Where does “山姥” come from?

山姥 (Japanese) comes from Japanese 山, from Japanese 陰, from Middle Chinese 陰.

山姥 (Japanese): a mountain hag; a yama-uba

Definitions

  1. a mountain hag; a yama-uba

Ancestry of “山姥”, step by step

山姥 traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Japanese 山

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese山a mountain or hill; a mine; a heap, pile
2Japanese陰shadow, shade; hidden side; yin
3Middle Chinese陰—

via Japanese 姥

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese姥an old woman
Every word from Middle Chinese 陰 →Every word from Japanese 陰 →Every word from Japanese 山 →