Meaning

verb discover the location of; determine the place of; find by searching or examining

verb determine or indicate the place, site, or limits of, as if by an instrument or by a survey

verb assign a location to

originBorrowed from Latin locātus, perfect passive participle of locō (“to place”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), from locus (“place”) + -ō (verb-forming suffix). Cognate with French louer; see also local and lieu.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0