whence vs. from whence
Whence or from whence?
Whence means from where. Thus, the phrase from whence is redundant. Hearing the sentence, “Whence came you?” we feel that something is missing, even though the sentence is technically correct. That’s why from whence is so often used instead of whence alone; the writer wishes to use an archaic or dramatic flourish but ends up treating whence the same as where or which—for instance:
Without warning, he dissolves into the blackness from whence he came . . .
Of course, redundancy hasn’t stopped great writers from using from whence for centuries—for example, Shakespeare:
