Where does “Portoferraio” come from?
Portoferraio (Italian) comes from Italian ferraio, from Latin ferrārius, from Latin ferrum, from Cornish -er, from English -er, from Middle English -er, from Old French -er, from Latin -āre — he, she.
Ancestry of “Portoferraio”, step by step
Portoferraio traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Italian ferraio
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Italian | ferraio | that works with iron |
| 2 | Latin | ferrārius | of, or relating to iron |
| 3 | Latin | ferrum | iron; any tool made of iron; fight, clash |
| 4 | Cornish | -er | Forms masculine agent nouns |
| 5 | English | -er | A person or thing that does an action indicated... |
| 6 | Middle English | -er | agentive suffix; agent noun suffix |
| 7 | Old French | -er | Alternative form of -ier, verbal suffix;... |
| 8 | Latin | -āre | first conjugation |
| 9 | Proto-Italic | -āō | Forms primarily denominative verbs |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | -eh₂yéti | Creates iterative/ frequentative/ intensive... |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | -yéti | Creates intransitive, often deponent,... |
| 12 | Proto-Indo-European | yé- | — |
| 13 | Chichewa | iye | he, she |
via Italian porto
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Italian | porto | port, harbour; port; carriage |
| 2 | Portuguese | Porto | Oporto |
| 3 | Old Portuguese | porto | — |
| 4 | Latin | Portus Cale | Oporto |
| 5 | Latin | Portus | ” or, later, “Portus Rōmae”}} Portus large artificial harbour of Ancient Rome |
| 6 | Proto-Italic | portus | harbour |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | pértus | crossing |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | per- | before, in front; first; to go through |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | pr̥tós | passed , crossed |