Where does “onee-chan” come from?

onee-chan (English) comes from Japanese お姉ちゃん, from Japanese 御, from Middle Chinese 御.

onee-chan (English): An older sister

Definitions

  1. An older sister

Ancestry of “onee-chan”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japaneseお姉ちゃんterm of endearment elder sister, (big) sis
2Japanese御"indicates that the is honorific"; often used to...
3Middle Chinese御—
Every word from Middle Chinese 御 →Every word from Japanese 御 →Every word from Japanese お姉ちゃん →