Where does “水兵” come from?
水兵 (Japanese) comes from Japanese 水, from Old Japanese 水, from Proto-Japonic *mentu — water.
水兵 (Japanese): a sailor
Ancestry of “水兵”, step by step
水兵 traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Japanese 水
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Japanese | 水 | water; drinking water; a fluid, liquid |
| 2 | Old Japanese | 水 | water |
| 3 | Proto-Japonic | *mentu | water |
via Japanese 兵
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Japanese | 兵 | a soldier; a war machine; a weapon; a battle, a... |
| 2 | Middle Chinese | へい | — |
| 3 | Middle Chinese | 兵 | — |