Where does “lunar” come from?
Lunar comes from Middle English lunar, from Latin lunaris, an adjective formed with the suffix -aris from Latin luna meaning moon, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European lewk- meaning to shine.
lunar (English): Of, pertaining to, or resembling the Moon (that is, Luna, the Earth's moon)
Definitions
- Of, pertaining to, or resembling the Moon (that is, Luna, the Earth's moon)
Ancestry of “lunar”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | lunar | shaped like the crescent moon |
| 2 | Latin | lunaris | Of or pertaining to the moon, lunar |
| 3 | Norman | leune | moon; jellyfish |
| 4 | Old French | lune | the Moon |
| 5 | Latin | lūna | — |
| 6 | Old Latin | losna | — |
| 7 | Proto-Italic | louksnā | moon |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | lówksneh₂ | moon |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | lewḱ- | lynx |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | lewk- | bright; to shine; to see |