Where does “Chamaeleon” come from?

Chamaeleon (English) comes from Latin chamaeleon, from Ancient Greek χαμαιλέων, from Ancient Greek χαμαί, from Ancient Greek Χθών, from Proto-Indo-European dʰéǵʰōm, from Proto-Indo-European -ōm, from Proto-Indo-European -mi.

Chamaeleon (English): A small circumpolar constellation of the southern sky, imagined to resemble a chameleon, which lies south of the constellations Carina and Musca

Definitions

  1. A small circumpolar constellation of the southern sky, imagined to resemble a chameleon, which lies south of the constellations Carina and Musca

Ancestry of “Chamaeleon”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Latinchamaeleonchameleon; carline thistle
2Ancient Greekχαμαιλέωνchameleon; type of plant, so called because of...
3Ancient Greekχαμαίon the earth, near the ground; to the...
4Ancient GreekΧθώνthe Earth, personified as a goddess
5Proto-Indo-Europeandʰéǵʰōmearth
6Proto-Indo-European-ōmemphatic suffix or postpositive particle
7Proto-Indo-European-mi
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -miEvery word from Proto-Indo-European -ōmEvery word from Proto-Indo-European dʰéǵʰōm