Where does “中国” come from?

中国 (Japanese) comes from Japanese 中, from Japanese 中今, from Japanese 今 — now; just now; soon.

中国 (Japanese): the central part of a country, historically,...

Definitions

  1. the central part of a country, historically,...

Ancestry of “中国”, step by step

中国 traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Japanese 中

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese中middle, medium; average; neither good nor poor;...
2Japanese中今the present, as a privileged moment in eternity
3Japanese今now; just now; soon

via Japanese 国

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese国a land, a large place; a country in general, a...
2Old Japanese国—
Every word from Japanese 今 →Every word from Japanese 中 →Every word from Japanese 中今 →