English
posada
Posada comes from Spanish posar ‘to pose’, from Latin pauso ‘to halt, cease, pause’, and perhaps ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *peh₂w- ‘few, little’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*peh₂w-1‘few, little’uncertain
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEπαύω2paúō‘to make an end of, stop, abate’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEπαῦσις2paûsis‘stopping, ceasing’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpausa2‘a pause, halt, stop, cessation, end’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpauso3as pausāre‘to halt, cease, pause’
- Spanishc. 1500–presentposar4‘to pose’
- Spanishc. 1500–presentposada4
- Englishearliest quotation 2008posada4
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
- 1 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek παύω, which cites LIV, Beekes
- 2 Wiktionary, Latin pauso
- 3 Wiktionary, Spanish posar
- 4 Wiktionary, English posada
- Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2008, Judith Lerner, A chef's menu stirs Christmas memories: “They make a posada for the kids over there.”.
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*peh₂w-Wiktionary, Ancient Greek παύω, which cites LIV, Beekes‘few, little’uncertain
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEπαύωWiktionary, Latin pausopaúō‘to make an end of, stop, abate’
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEπαῦσιςWiktionary, Latin pausopaûsis‘stopping, ceasing’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpausaWiktionary, Latin pauso‘a pause, halt, stop, cessation, end’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpausoWiktionary, Spanish posaras pausāre‘to halt, cease, pause’
- Spanishc. 1500–presentposarWiktionary, English posada‘to pose’
- Spanishc. 1500–presentposadaWiktionary, English posada
- Englishearliest quotation 2008posadaWiktionary, English posada. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2008, Judith Lerner, A chef's menu stirs Christmas memories: “They make a posada for the kids over there.”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *peh₂w- ‘few, little’
few, poor, fewer, puppy, pupil, puppet, pediatrics, pave, filly, pedagogy, paucity, pupa, orthopedics, puerile, 26 more
through Ancient Greek παύω ‘to make an end of, stop, abate’
through Ancient Greek παῦσις ‘stopping, ceasing’
through Latin pausa ‘a pause, halt, stop, cessation, end’
pause, pose, menopausal, 5 more
through Latin pauso ‘to halt, cease, pause’
Today it means
noun A traditional Mexican Christmas procession.
Sources
Sources: Wiktionary, “posada”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Ancient Greek παύω, Latin pauso, Spanish posar. 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 *peh₂w- / posada