Where does “日本” come from?
日本 (Japanese) comes from Japanese 日, from Old Japanese 日, from Proto-Japonic *pi.
日本 (Japanese): {{l|en|Japan}}; Japan
Ancestry of “日本”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Japanese | 日 | Short for 日曜日 : Sunday; the sun; sunlight,... |
| 2 | Old Japanese | 日 | the sun; sunlight, sunshine; daytime, daylight |
| 3 | Proto-Japonic | *pi | — |