The Spanish word 'manera' meaning 'way' or 'manner' comes from the Latin word 'manuaria', which meant 'way of handling'. The Latin word 'manuaria' was formed by combining three elements: 'manus' meaning 'hand', the suffix '-arius' meaning 'belonging to', and '-ia' indicating a quality. So literally, it described the quality of how something was handled or done by hand, which evolved to describe methods or ways of doing things in general.

The Spanish word 'mano' (meaning 'hand') is a simpler related word that comes from the same Latin root 'manus'. While 'mano' retained the literal meaning of the physical hand, 'manera' evolved to describe the metaphorical way of handling or doing things.

Several English words share this Latin ancestry, including 'manual' (done by hand), 'manage' (originally meaning to handle, especially horses), and 'manner' (which is almost identical in meaning to 'manera'). All these words trace back to Latin 'manus' for 'hand'. The English word 'manner' is particularly close to Spanish 'manera', as both developed from the same concept of 'way of handling' to mean 'way' or 'method' in general.