Where does “tea” come from?

Tea comes from Dutch thee, from Proto-Sino-Tibetan s-la, from Min Nan 茶.

tea (English): The tea plant (Camellia sinensis); a variety of this plant

Definitions

  1. The tea plant (Camellia sinensis); a variety of this plant

Ancestry of “tea”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Dutchtheetea
2Malaytehtea
3Malayputihwhite
4Classical Malayputihwhite
5Proto-Malayicputihwhite
6Proto-Malayo-Polynesian(ma-)putiqwhite

Words derived from “tea”

Every word from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian (ma-)putiq →Every word from Proto-Malayic putih →Every word from Classical Malay putih →