Where does “mahjong” come from?

mahjong (English) comes from Chinese 麻將, from Chinese 麻雀 — sparrow; tree sparrow; mahjong.

mahjong (English): A game for four players, using a collection of...

Definitions

  1. A game for four players, using a collection of...

Ancestry of “mahjong”, step by step

mahjong traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.

via Chinese 麻將

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Chinese麻將mahjong; sparrow
2Chinese麻雀sparrow; tree sparrow; mahjong

via Chinese Mandarin 麻將

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Chinese Mandarin麻將—
2Chinese Mandarin麻雀—

via Cantonese 麻將

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Cantonese麻將—

Words derived from “mahjong”

Every word from Chinese 麻雀 →Every word from Chinese 麻將 →