Where does “mina” come from?
mina (Spanish) comes from French mine, from Breton min, from Italian mina, from Latin mina, from Gaulish mēnā, from Proto-Celtic *meinis, from Proto-Indo-European mēy(H)nis, from Proto-Indo-European (s)mēy(H)- — to cut, hew.
mina (Spanish): mine; lead; woman
Definitions
- mine; lead; woman
Ancestry of “mina”, step by step
mina traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.
via French mine
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | French | mine | mine; pencil lead; piledriver, scorcher |
| 2 | Breton | min | face of an animal; beak, muzzle |
| 3 | Italian | mina | mine, land mine; lead in pencils; mine which... |
| 4 | Latin | mina | A Greek weight equal to 100 drachmas; A Greek... |
| 5 | Gaulish | mēnā | ore, mine |
| 6 | Proto-Celtic | *meinis | ore, metal |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | mēy(H)nis | — |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | (s)mēy(H)- | to cut, hew |
via Italian femmina
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Italian | femmina | female |
| 2 | Latin | fēmina | woman |
| 3 | Proto-Italic | fēmanā | woman |
| 4 | Proto-Indo-European | dʰeh₁-m̥n-eh₂ | who sucks; one who is sucked; one who suckles;... |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | dʰeh₁(y)- | to suckle, nurse |
via Galician meniña
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Galician | meniña | infant |
| 2 | Old Portuguese | menỹo | boy |
| 3 | Latin | minimus | least, smallest |
| 4 | Proto-Indo-European | *(s)mey(h₁)- | — |