This base type is derived from Lat. lac 'milk', which corresponds to Gr. γάλα (n.) or γλάγος (n; primarily poetic, preference likely due to metrics, as documented in Homer Il. II 471 or Pindar AGr. 106) (cf. Georges 2, 525 under lac). Later, the gender changed from neuter to masculine which resulted in Lat. lăcte(m) (acc. of lac [n.] = lac!). Lat. lacte(m) (masculine gender) was largely retained as an inherited word in Romanesque languages, which led to Fr. lait, Ita. làtte, Friulan lait, Piedmontese lait and the Dolomite Ladin type làt as well (cf. FEW 5, 114 under làt; cf. EWD 4, 177; cf. DELI 3, 655). The inherited masculine word is less common than the feminine in VerbaAlpina's research area, like, for example, the Venetic late (cf. DéROM under */'lakt-e/). Beyond the Alpine region, the feminine type can mainly be found in southern France and northern Spain (cf. DéROM loc. cit.). In some areas of the Alps, like Switzerland and Savoy, the word for milk is derived from Lat. *lacticellum, which is a diminutive form of lăcte(m) (cf. FEW 5, 114). Ita. latticèllo 'buttermilk' can be traced back to this as well (cf. DELI 3, 655). Furthermore, some terms that designate SÜSSMOLKE stem from this base type. Derivations with the suffix -ata, which constitutes a collective noun, served this purpose. However, based on the notion that the whey emitted during cheese production is not as rich a milk, diminutives can also often be found in this case. This led to the French expression petit-lait as the term for SÜSSMOLKE, which literally means 'small milk'. The preceding adjective petit 'small' conveys the same concept as a diminutive (cf. FEW 5: 114).