Where does “Indochina” come from?
Indochina derives from English China via Portuguese China, ultimately from Sanskrit चीन, a name for the region or people of East Asia.
Ancestry of “Indochina”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | French | Indochine | an orange-brown color |
| 2 | French | Indo- | Indo |
| 3 | Latin | India | — |
| 4 | Ancient Greek | Ἰνδία | — |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | Ἰνδός | an inhabitant of India or the Indian... |
| 6 | Old Persian | 𐏃𐎡𐎯𐎢𐏁 | India; people living beyond the Indus |
| 7 | Sanskrit | सिन्धु | a river, stream; flood, waters; ocean, sea |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-Aryan | síndʰuṣ | river, ocean; flow |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-Iranian | síndʰuš | river, stream |
| 10 | Sanskrit | सिन्धु॑ | — |