'aura' originates from Latin, specifically the word 'aura', where 'aura' meant 'breeze, breath'.

'aura' came into English via Latin from the Ancient Greek word 'αὔρα' (aúra); the Greek term meant 'breeze' and was adopted into Latin as 'aura' before entering Medieval and then modern English.

Initially it meant 'breeze' or 'gentle wind', but over time it broadened to mean a subtle emanation or surrounding atmosphere and later acquired the medical sense of a sensory 'prelude' to a migraine or seizure.