Where does “poppa” come from?

poppa (Maltese) comes from Italian poppa, from Latin puppa, from Latin pupa, from Latin pupus, from Proto-Indo-European peh₂w- — few, little; smallness.

poppa (Maltese): stern, poop

Definitions

stern, poop

Ancestry of “poppa”, step by step

Step	Language	Word	Meaning
1	Italian	poppa	breast, boob; stern; third-person singular...
2	Latin	puppa	stern
3	Latin	pupa	girl, little girl; doll, puppet; pupa
4	Latin	pupus	a boy, a child; a puppet; the pupil of the eye
5	Proto-Indo-European	peh₂w-	few, little; smallness

Every word from Proto-Indo-European peh₂w- →Every word from Latin pupus →Every word from Latin pupa →