The Spanish word 'queja' (meaning 'complaint') has an interesting evolution from Latin roots. It comes from the Spanish verb 'quejar' ('to complain'), which developed from the Vulgar Latin '*quassiare' meaning 'to complain'. This Vulgar Latin term was derived from the Classical Latin 'quassare', which meant 'to shake violently'.

The semantic evolution from 'to shake violently' to 'to complain' makes intuitive sense when you think about how people might shake or tremble when they are upset or agitated while complaining. The phonetic evolution follows regular sound changes from Latin to Spanish, where the Latin 'qua-' typically evolved into Spanish 'que-'.

A common related Spanish word is the reflexive verb 'quejarse', which means 'to complain' or 'to moan'. You might also encounter 'quejido' (a moan or groan) and 'quejumbroso' (someone who complains a lot), all sharing the same root.

While there aren't any direct English cognates from the Latin 'quassare', English does have some distant relatives through different Latin derivatives. The word 'quash' (meaning to crush or put down forcefully) comes from the same Latin root 'quassare' (to shake violently). The connection becomes clear when you think about how both 'quashing' something and 'complaining' involve some form of forceful expression or action.