Where does “Vía Láctea” come from?
Vía Láctea (Galician) comes from Latin Via Lactea, from Latin viā, from Proto-Italic *wiā, from Proto-Indo-European wih₁eh₂-, from Proto-Indo-European weyh₁- — to chase, pursue; to suppress, persecute.
Ancestry of “Vía Láctea”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Latin | Via Lactea | — |
| 2 | Latin | viā | — |
| 3 | Proto-Italic | *wiā | — |
| 4 | Proto-Indo-European | wih₁eh₂- | — |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | weyh₁- | to chase, pursue; to suppress, persecute |