English
Vela
Vela comes from Latin vēla ‘sails of a ship’.
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEvēla‘sails of a ship’
- EnglishtodayVela
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Earlier history not traced here.
Lineage
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEvēla‘sails of a ship’
- EnglishtodayVela
The story
Named by the French astronomer Nicolas Louis de Lacaille in 1763.
Every English word from Latin vēla
Today it means
name A spring constellation of the northern sky, said to resemble the sails of a ship. Until 1763, it was part of a larger constellation, Argo Navis.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Latin vēla / Vela