Where does “nunca” come from?
nunca (Old Portuguese) comes from Latin numquam, from Latin nē, from Latin gēns, from Proto-Italic *gentis, from Proto-Indo-European ǵénh₁tis, from Proto-Indo-European ǵenh₁- — to produce, to beget, to give birth.
Ancestry of “nunca”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Latin | numquam | never, at no time |
| 2 | Latin | nē | no; not |
| 3 | Latin | gēns | Roman clan (related by birth or marriage and sharing a common name and often united by certain religious rites) |
| 4 | Proto-Italic | *gentis | — |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | ǵénh₁tis | birth, production |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | ǵenh₁- | to produce, to beget, to give birth |