Last but not least

Origin of: Last but not least

Last but not least

The earliest citation for this now well-worn phrase appears to be from John Lyly Euphues and His England (1580) “last, but not the least”, closely followed by Edmund Spenser, Colin Clouts Comes Home Again (1595) “Though last, not least.” A few years later, Shakespeare uses the expression in two of his plays, King Lear Act I, Scene I, “Although the last, not least.” Julius Caesar Act III, Scene I, “Though last, not least in love.” As an expression, it appears to have been around the block for quite some time.