Where does “明太子” come from?

明太子 (Japanese) comes from Japanese 子, from Japanese 鼠, from Japanese nezumi.

明太子 (Japanese): the marinated roe of "Theragra chalcogramma", the...

Definitions

  1. the marinated roe of "Theragra chalcogramma", the...

Ancestry of “明太子”, step by step

明太子 traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Japanese 子

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese子a child; a girl, especially a dear or desired...
2Japanese鼠a mouse or a rat; general term for members of...
3Japanesenezumi—

via Japanese 明太

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese明太Alaska pollock
2Korean명태Alaska pollock
Every word from Japanese nezumi →Every word from Japanese 鼠 →Every word from Japanese 子 →