During the ancient Greek and Roman eras, Basilicata was known as Lucania. This was possibly derived from leukos (Greek: λευκός), meaning "white", from lykos (Greek: λύκος), meaning "wolf", or from Latin lūcus, meaning "sacred wood". More probably, the name Lucania derived, like the forename (praenomen) Lucius, from the Latin word Lux (gen. lucis), meaning "light" (from PIE *leuk-, "brightness", also the root of the Latin verb lucere, "to shine"), which is a cognate of the name Lucas. Another proposed etymology is a derivation from the Etruscan word Lauchum (or Lauchme), meaning "king", which passed into Latin as Lucumo.Bonfante G., Bonfante L., The Etruscan Language: An Introduction, 1983, p. 59.
During the ancient Greek and Roman eras, Basilicata was known as Lucania. This was possibly derived from leukos (Greek: λευκός), meaning "white", from lykos (Greek: λύκος), meaning "wolf", or from Latin lūcus, meaning "sacred wood". More probably, the name Lucania derived, like the forename (praenomen) Lucius, from the Latin word Lux (gen. lucis), meaning "light" (from PIE *leuk-, "brightness", also the root of the Latin verb lucere, "to shine"), which is a cognate of the name Lucas. Another proposed etymology is a derivation from the Etruscan word Lauchum (or Lauchme) meaning "king", which passed into Latin as Lucumo.Bonfante G., Bonfante L., The Etruscan Language: An Introduction, 1983, p. 59.