Where does “猫鮫” come from?

猫鮫 (Japanese) comes from Japanese 猫, from Old Japanese ねこ.

猫鮫 (Japanese): a Japanese bullhead shark (Heterodontus japonicus)

Definitions

  1. a Japanese bullhead shark (Heterodontus japonicus)

Ancestry of “猫鮫”, step by step

猫鮫 traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Japanese 猫

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese猫a cat
2Old Japaneseねこ—

via Japanese 鮫

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese鮫a shark
Every word from Old Japanese ねこ →Every word from Japanese 猫 →
猫鮫 — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer