Where does “substratum” come from?
substratum (New Latin) comes from Latin substratus, from Latin substerno, from Latin sternō, from Proto-Italic stornō, from Proto-Indo-European str̥-n-h₃-, from Proto-Indo-European sterh₃-, from Proto-Indo-European ster- — sterile, infertile.
Ancestry of “substratum”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Latin | substratus | — |
| 2 | Latin | substerno | I strew, scatter, spread out or under; I bestrew,... |
| 3 | Latin | sternō | to spread, stretch out, spread out |
| 4 | Proto-Italic | stornō | — |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | str̥-n-h₃- | — |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | sterh₃- | to spread, extend, stretch out |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | ster- | sterile, infertile |