Where does “lac” come from?
lac (English) comes from Portuguese laca, from Persian لاک, from Urdu لاکھ, from Maharastri Prakrit 𑀮𑀓𑁆𑀔, from Sanskrit लक्ष, from Sanskrit लक्ष्, from Sanskrit रक्ष्, from Proto-Indo-Aryan Hrakṣ- — to protect.
Ancestry of “lac”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Portuguese | laca | lake; lac |
| 2 | Persian | لاک | — |
| 3 | Urdu | لاکھ | lakh, lac |
| 4 | Maharastri Prakrit | 𑀮𑀓𑁆𑀔 | — |
| 5 | Sanskrit | लक्ष | a mark, sign, token; a mark to aim at, target,... |
| 6 | Sanskrit | लक्ष् | perceive, observe; recognise; to mark, sign |
| 7 | Sanskrit | रक्ष् | to protect, guard, watch, take care of, save,... |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-Aryan | Hrakṣ- | — |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-Iranian | Hrakš- | — |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂lek- | to protect |