Etymology Explorer › Spanish

Where does “por qué” come from?

por qué (Spanish) comes from Spanish por, from Old Spanish por, from Vulgar Latin por, from Latin prō, from Latin ratus, from Latin rēōr, from Proto-Italic rēōr, from Proto-Indo-European h₂reh₁- — to fit, to fix, to put together.

por qué (Spanish): why, for what reason

Definitions

  1. why, for what reason

Ancestry of “por qué”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Spanishporby; for; through, out, via
2Old Spanishpor—
3Vulgar Latinporfor
4Latinprō—
5Latinratusconsidered, having been considered; established,...
6Latinrēōr—
7Proto-Italicrēōrto reckon, to calculate; to think, to deem, to...
8Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂reh₁-to think, reason; to arrange
9Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂er-to fit, to fix, to put together

Words derived from “por qué”

  • porqué
Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₂er- →