Where does “熊猫” come from?

熊猫 (Japanese) comes from Japanese 熊, from Old Japanese くま, from Old Korean 고마 — bear.

熊猫 (Japanese): panda

Definitions

  1. panda

Ancestry of “熊猫”, step by step

熊猫 traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Japanese 熊

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese熊a bear; a bear, an otter
2Old Japaneseくま—
3Old Korean고마bear

via Japanese 猫

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese猫a cat
2Old Japaneseねこ—
Every word from Old Korean 고마 →Every word from Old Japanese くま →Every word from Japanese 熊 →
熊猫 — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer