The Spanish word 'mudanza' comes from combining the verb 'mudar' (meaning 'to move' or 'to change') with the suffix '-anza', which forms nouns indicating an action or quality. The verb 'mudar' itself derives from the Latin word 'mutare', meaning 'to change'. This combination created a noun that refers to the act of moving or making a change.

A simpler and more common related Spanish word is the verb 'mudar', which means 'to move' or 'to change'. You might hear this in contexts like 'mudar de casa' (to move house) or 'mudar de opinión' (to change one's mind). The noun 'mudanza' is essentially the nominalization of this action - it refers to the move or change itself.

Several English words share the same Latin root 'mutare'. These include 'mutate', 'mutation', 'mutual', and 'commute'. Just as 'mudanza' refers to change or movement in Spanish, these English words all carry some notion of change: 'mutate' means to change form, a 'mutation' is a change in genetic material, 'mutual' implies a shared or exchanged (changed) relationship, and 'commute' originally meant to change one thing for another, though it's now commonly used for regular travel between home and work.