Where does “漢字” come from?
漢字 (Japanese) comes from Japanese 漢, from Middle Chinese 漢 — Han dynasty, China.
漢字 (Japanese): kanji
Ancestry of “漢字”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Japanese | 漢 | man; element in compounds, referring to things... |
| 2 | Middle Chinese | 漢 | Han dynasty, China |