Where does “何となく” come from?
何となく (Japanese) comes from Japanese と, from Old Japanese と, from Proto-Japonic tə, from Proto-Uralic tä — that.
何となく (Japanese): somehow or other, for some reason or another
Definitions
- somehow or other, for some reason or another
Ancestry of “何となく”, step by step
何となく traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.
via Japanese と
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Japanese | と | with; and; a particle following a phrase or... |
| 2 | Old Japanese | と | — |
| 3 | Proto-Japonic | tə | place |
| 4 | Proto-Uralic | tä | that |
via Japanese 何
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Japanese | 何 | What?, Huh?; what; that thing |
via Japanese なく
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Japanese | なく | — |