"act of transferring," 1680s, from transfer (v.) + -ence. In psychoanalytical sense it is recorded from 1911, translating German übertragung (Freud).
Entries linking to transference
transfer v.
late 14c., from Old French transferer or directly from Latin transferre "bear across, carry over, bring through; transfer, copy, translate," from trans "across, beyond" (see trans-) + ferre "to carry" (from PIE root *bher- (1) "to carry"). Related: Transferred; transferring.