locusta.

The origin is uncertain, length of the first vowel varies. According to De Vaan, the only word similar in form and meaning is lacerta (“lizard; mackerel”) and “they could be cognate words in the language from which Latin borrowed these forms”. Pokorny connects lō̆custa and lacerta with Ancient Greek λάξ (láx) λάγδην (lágdēn, “with the foot”, adverb), λάκτις (láktis, “pestle”), λικερτίζειν (likertízein, “to jump, to dance”) and Old Norse leggr (“lower leg, bone”), Lombardic lagi (“thigh”), deriving all from Proto-Indo-European *lek- (“joint, member; to bend, to wind”), explaining lō̆custa as “equipped with joints”. This is considered unconvincing by De Vaan.