Where does “Rivera” come from?
Rivera comes from Old Spanish ribera, from Latin rivus, from Proto-Indo-European h₃rih₂wós, ultimately deriving from the root h₃er- meaning to flow or move.
Ancestry of “Rivera”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Spanish | Rivera | — |
| 2 | Vulgar Latin | *rīvāria | — |
| 3 | Latin | rīvus | — |
| 4 | Proto-Italic | rīwos | — |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | h₃riH-wó-s | — |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | h₃reyH- | to move, set in motion; to flow, stream ; to... |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | h₃er- | to move, to stir; to rise, to spring; to quarrel,... |