Where does “hapon” come from?
hapon (Bikol Central) comes from Spanish Japón, from Portuguese Japão, from Malay Jepang, from Hokkien 日本, from Middle Chinese 日本 — Land of the Rising Sun.
Ancestry of “hapon”, step by step
hapon traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Spanish Japón
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Spanish | Japón | Japan |
| 2 | Portuguese | Japão | Japanese |
| 3 | Malay | Jepang | Japanese |
| 4 | Hokkien | 日本 | Japan; Japanese; Japan |
| 5 | Middle Chinese | 日本 | Land of the Rising Sun |
via Proto-Philippine *hapun
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Proto-Philippine | *hapun | — |