Where does “variola” come from?

variola (Serbo-Croatian) comes from Medieval Latin variola, from Latin varius, from Latin vārus, from Proto-Indo-European h₂wer-, from Proto-Indo-European wēr-, from Proto-Indo-European wer- — to burn; to cover, heed, notice; squirrel.

variola (Serbo-Croatian): smallpox

Definitions

  1. smallpox

Ancestry of “variola”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Medieval Latinvariola—
2Latinvariusdiverse, different, various, variegated
3Latinvārus—
4Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂wer-to lift up; to moisten; to flow; to raise, hang
5Proto-Indo-Europeanwēr-true
6Proto-Indo-Europeanwer-to burn; to cover, heed, notice; squirrel
Every word from Proto-Indo-European wer- →Every word from Proto-Indo-European wēr- →Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₂wer- →