Where does “” come from?

tè (Italian) comes from French thé, from Dutch thee, from Malay teh, from Malay putih, from Classical Malay putih, from Proto-Malayic putih, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian (ma-)putiq — white.

(Italian): tea

Definitions

  1. tea

Ancestry of “”, step by step

traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via French thé

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Frenchthétea
2Dutchtheetea
3Malaytehtea
4Malayputihwhite
5Classical Malayputihwhite
6Proto-Malayicputihwhite
7Proto-Malayo-Polynesian(ma-)putiqwhite

via Latin

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Latin
2Latinyou (singular); thou
3Proto-Italicyou
4Proto-Indo-Europeantúh₂you, thou

Words derived from “

Every word from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian (ma-)putiqEvery word from Proto-Malayic putihEvery word from Classical Malay putih