Where does “*pro-” come from?
*pro- (Proto-Italic) comes from Proto-Indo-European pro-, from Proto-Indo-European por-, from Proto-Indo-European per-, from Proto-Indo-European pr̥tós — passed , crossed.
Ancestry of “*pro-”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Proto-Indo-European | pro- | toward, forward |
| 2 | Proto-Indo-European | por- | to give birth; forward, through; going, passage |
| 3 | Proto-Indo-European | per- | before, in front; first; to go through |
| 4 | Proto-Indo-European | pr̥tós | passed , crossed |