English
Pictor
Pictor comes from Latin pīctor ‘easel’, from pingō ‘to decorate, adorn, embellish’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *peyḱ- ‘to hew, cut out’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*peyḱ-‘to hew, cut out’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*pinéḱtireconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*pingōreconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpingō‘to decorate, adorn, embellish’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEpīctor‘easel’
- EnglishtodayPictor
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*peyḱ-‘to hew, cut out’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*pinéḱtireconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*pingōreconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpingō‘to decorate, adorn, embellish’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEpīctor‘easel’
- EnglishtodayPictor
The story
Named by the French astronomer Nicolas Louis de Lacaille in 1763.
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *peyḱ- ‘to hew, cut out’
fish, file, feud, piscina, 26 more
through Proto-Italic *pingō
through Latin pingō ‘to decorate, adorn, embellish’
paint, picture, pint, pigment, depiction, depict, pimento, 9 more
Today it means
name A summer constellation of the southern sky, said to resemble an easel. It lies between the constellations Carina and Dorado.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *peyḱ- / Pictor