Where does “午前” come from?
午前 (Japanese) comes from Japanese 午, from Japanese 馬, from Middle Chinese 馬.
午前 (Japanese): forenoon, AM
Ancestry of “午前”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Japanese | 午 | noon; the {{w|Ox |Chinese zodiac Ox}} |
| 2 | Japanese | 馬 | a horse; a promoted bishop; a sawhorse: a... |
| 3 | Middle Chinese | 馬 | — |