Where does “狐の尾” come from?

狐の尾 (Japanese) comes from Japanese 狐, from Japanese 絵筆, from Japanese 筆, from Japanese 文, from Middle Chinese 文.

Ancestry of “狐の尾”, step by step

狐の尾 traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.

via Japanese 狐

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese狐a fox
2Japanese絵筆paintbrush
3Japanese筆a writing brush, a painting brush, a pen;...
4Japanese文the mon, an old currency; a unit of length for...
5Middle Chinese文—

via Japanese の

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japaneseのgenitive case marker; nominative case marker in a...
2Old Japaneseのplain, field
3Middle Chinese能talent, ability

via Japanese 尾

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese尾a tail; the foot of a mountain; the end of...
2Old Japanese尾—
Every word from Middle Chinese 文 →Every word from Japanese 文 →Every word from Japanese 筆 →