Where does “最善” come from?

最善 (Japanese) comes from Japanese 最, from Proto-Indo-European sai-.

最善 (Japanese): the best

Definitions

  1. the best

Ancestry of “最善”, step by step

最善 traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Japanese 最

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese最most, greatest
2Proto-Indo-Europeansai-—

via Japanese 善

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese善good
2Middle Chinese善—

Words derived from “最善”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European sai- →Every word from Japanese 最 →