Where does “Tsunami” come from?

Tsunami (German) comes from Japanese 津波, from Japanese 波, from Middle Chinese 波.

Tsunami (German): tsunami large, destructive wave generally caused by a tremendous disturbance in the ocean

Definitions

  1. tsunami large, destructive wave generally caused by a tremendous disturbance in the ocean

Ancestry of “Tsunami”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese津波a tsunami; a tidal wave; a tidal bore
2Japanese波wave
3Middle Chinese波—
Every word from Middle Chinese 波 →Every word from Japanese 波 →Every word from Japanese 津波 →
Tsunami — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer