Where does “それ” come from?

それ (Japanese) comes from Japanese れ, from Old Japanese れ — nominalizing suffix used to form pronouns, often from demonstratives: one, thing.

それ (Japanese): that one near you; the one we are talking about;...

Definitions

  1. that one near you; the one we are talking about;...

Ancestry of “それ”, step by step

それ traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Japanese れ

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japaneseれnominalizing suffix used to form pronouns, often...
2Old Japaneseれnominalizing suffix used to form pronouns, often from demonstratives: one, thing

via Japanese そ

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japaneseそ十 ten; 衣 clothing; 背 back

Words derived from “それ”

Every word from Old Japanese れ →Every word from Japanese れ →