Where does “おおいぬ座” come from?

おおいぬ座 (Japanese) comes from Japanese 大, from Old Japanese 大, from Proto-Japonic əpə — big, large; many.

おおいぬ座 (Japanese): Canis Major

Definitions

  1. Canis Major

Ancestry of “おおいぬ座”, step by step

おおいぬ座 traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.

via Japanese 大

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese大big, large; the large part of; arch-
2Old Japanese大big, large; large
3Proto-Japonicəpəbig, large; many

via Japanese 犬

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese犬dog; canine; one who is loyal; a spy
2Old Japaneseいぬ—

via Japanese 座

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese座names of constellations; names of theaters
2Middle Chinese座—
Every word from Proto-Japonic əpə →Every word from Old Japanese 大 →Every word from Japanese 大 →
おおいぬ座 — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer