Where does “BL” come from?
BL (Japanese) comes from Japanese ボーイズ ラブ, from English Love, from Middle English love, from Old English lufu, from Proto-West Germanic *lubu, from Proto-Germanic lubō, from Proto-Indo-European lewbʰ-, from Proto-Indo-European lēw- — to sound, resound, sing out; to leave.
Ancestry of “BL”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Japanese | ボーイズ ラブ | — |
| 2 | English | Love | radiotelephony clear-code word for the letter L |
| 3 | Middle English | love | love; strong and deep affection |
| 4 | Old English | lufu | love |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | *lubu | love |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | lubō | love, affection |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | lewbʰ- | to desire, covet, want; to admire, praise; to... |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | lēw- | to sound, resound, sing out; to leave |