Where does “人質” come from?

人質 (Japanese) comes from Japanese 人, from Proto-Japonic *pitə — one.

人質 (Japanese): a hostage; indentureship, the state of being in...

Definitions

  1. a hostage; indentureship, the state of being in...

Ancestry of “人質”, step by step

人質 traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Japanese 人

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese人a person, human; an individual; mankind, people
2Proto-Japonic*pitəone

via Japanese 質

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese質quality; pawn
2Middle Chinese質—
Every word from Proto-Japonic *pitə →Every word from Japanese 人 →