Where does “sensei” come from?

sensei (French) comes from Japanese 先生, from Middle Chinese 先生, from Middle Chinese 生 — born.

sensei (French): sensei martial arts instructor

Definitions

  1. sensei martial arts instructor

Ancestry of “sensei”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese先生an elder; a scholar; a teacher or a professor
2Middle Chinese先生master, elder
3Middle Chinese生born
Every word from Middle Chinese 生 →Every word from Middle Chinese 先生 →Every word from Japanese 先生 →