Where does “男の子” come from?

男の子 (Japanese) comes from Japanese の, from Old Japanese の, from Middle Chinese 能 — talent, ability.

男の子 (Japanese): a boy

Definitions

  1. a boy

Ancestry of “男の子”, step by step

男の子 traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.

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 子

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese子a child; a girl, especially a dear or desired...
2Japanese鼠a mouse or a rat; general term for members of...
3Japanesenezumi—

via Japanese 男

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese男a man; a male; a male lover
2Middle Chinese男—

Words derived from “男の子”

Every word from Middle Chinese 能 →Every word from Old Japanese の →Every word from Japanese の →