Etymograph

English

ala

Ala comes from Latin āla ‘wing’, from axis ‘an axletree of wagon, car, chariot’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂eḱs- ‘axis’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂eḱs-‘axis’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*aksisreconstructed
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEaxis‘an axletree of wagon, car, chariot’
  4. Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CE*axlareconstructed
  5. Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEāla‘wing’
  6. Englishtodayala

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂eḱs-‘axis’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*aksisreconstructed
  3. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEaxis‘an axletree of wagon, car, chariot’
  4. Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CE*axlareconstructed
  5. Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEāla‘wing’
  6. Englishtodayala

The story

Originated 1730–40, borrowed from Latin āla (‘wing’).

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *h₂eḱs- ‘axis’

axle, atelier, axon, 12 more

through Proto-Italic *aksis

axes, 12 more

through Latin axis ‘an axletree of wagon, car, chariot’

axis, axe, 12 more

through Latin āla ‘wing’

aisle, 11 more

Another origin of ala

  1. Frenchc. 1600–presentà la‘used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see à, la’
  2. Englishtodayala

Today it means

noun A wing or winglike anatomic process or part, especially of bone.

Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *h₂eḱs- / ala

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