Vaca
/ˈvɑːkə/noun
A cow or other bovine animal, especially in Spanish-speaking contexts.
Did you know?Edward Jenner’s smallpox vaccine was named from Latin vacca, meaning “cow,” because the protective material came from cowpox, a related disease of cattle.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*wóka
“A cow or bovine animal; the reconstructed ancestor of later Latin and Germanic cattle words.”
Classical Latin
Latin
vacca
“A cow, especially a female bovine.”
Medieval Latin
Latin
vacca
“Cow or cattle; the form remained in learned and Romance usage.”
Old Spanish
Old Spanish
vaca
“Cow; inherited from Latin vacca through regular sound changes.”
Modern Spanish
Spanish
vaca
“Cow; also used in compounds and figurative expressions.”
Modern English
English
vaca
“A loanword used chiefly in English-language writing about Spanish-speaking regions for a cow or bovine animal.”
Explore more surprising origins