regina.

Uncertain, though clearly related to rēx (“king”), itself from Proto-Indo-European *h₃reǵ- (“to rule”). It may derive from an adjective *reg-īno- (“regal, meant for the king”). Sihler instead connects the term with *h₃rḗǵnih₂, which—according to Sihler—perhaps yielded Proto-Italic *rēgnī-, which itself was perhaps remodeled into *rēgnīā according to the model of terms such as avia. Sihler further proposes that the form *rēgnīā was then reshaped into *rēgnīnā, which then shifted to rēgīnā through dissimilation and analogical remodeling under the influence of the base rēg- (see terms such as rēgius (“royal, kingly”)). Within Italic, the term may be related to Marrucinian regenai.