Where does “Portugal” come from?
Portugal (Galician) comes from Old Portuguese Portugal, from Latin Portucale, from Latin Portus Cale, from Latin Portus, from Proto-Italic portus, from Proto-Indo-European pértus, from Proto-Indo-European per-, from Proto-Indo-European pr̥tós — passed , crossed.
Ancestry of “Portugal”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Old Portuguese | Portugal | — |
| 2 | Latin | Portucale | Portugal |
| 3 | Latin | Portus Cale | Oporto |
| 4 | Latin | Portus | ” or, later, “Portus Rōmae”}} Portus large artificial harbour of Ancient Rome |
| 5 | Proto-Italic | portus | harbour |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | pértus | crossing |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | per- | before, in front; first; to go through |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | pr̥tós | passed , crossed |