Where does “船長” come from?

船長 (Japanese) comes from Japanese 船, from Old Japanese ふね, from Proto-Japonic punay — boat.

船長 (Japanese): a captain of a ship; the length of a ship

Definitions

  1. a captain of a ship; the length of a ship

Ancestry of “船長”, step by step

船長 traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Japanese 船

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese船ship, vessel, larger ship
2Old Japaneseふね—
3Proto-Japonicpunayboat

via Japanese 長

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese長chief, head, leader; strong point; major
2Middle Chinese長—
Every word from Proto-Japonic punay →Every word from Old Japanese ふね →Every word from Japanese 船 →
船長 — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer