Where does “数論” come from?

数論 (Japanese) comes from Japanese 数, from Middle Chinese 數, from Old Chinese 數.

数論 (Japanese): number theory

Definitions

  1. number theory

Ancestry of “数論”, step by step

数論 traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Japanese 数

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese数number; amount; number; several
2Middle Chinese數—
3Old Chinese數—

via Japanese 論

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese論theory
2Japanese統辞論syntax as a field of study, syntactics
3Japanese統辞syntax
Every word from Old Chinese 數 →Every word from Middle Chinese 數 →Every word from Japanese 数 →