Etymograph

English

lunula

Lunula comes from Latin lūnula ‘an ornament in the form of a little moon’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *lewk- ‘bright’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*lewk-1‘bright’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*lówksneh₂1‘moon’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*louksnā1‘moon’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CElūna2‘moon’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CElūnula3‘an ornament in the form of a little moon’
  6. Englishtodaylunula3

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin luna
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Latin lunula
  3. 3 Wiktionary, English lunula

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*lewk-Wiktionary, Latin luna‘bright’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*lówksneh₂Wiktionary, Latin luna‘moon’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*louksnāWiktionary, Latin luna‘moon’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CElūnaWiktionary, Latin lunula‘moon’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CElūnulaWiktionary, English lunula‘an ornament in the form of a little moon’
  6. EnglishtodaylunulaWiktionary, English lunula

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *lewk- ‘bright’

light, low, link, los, lucy, lea, ounce, illumination, illuminate, lynx, translucent, luminous, lucid, lux, lumen, luminosity, luce, lumia, loach, leucine, luminescent, lum, luminary, luminal, 72 more

through Proto-Italic *louksnā ‘moon’

lunatic, 11 more

through Latin lūna ‘moon’

lunar, luna, lune, 12 more

Today it means

noun Something shaped like a crescent or half-moon; especially the pale area at the base of the fingernail.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “lunula”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin luna, Latin lunula. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *lewk- / lunula

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