Where does “Махмұтбай” come from?

Махмұтбай (Kazakh) comes from Kazakh бай, from Chinese 白, from Proto-Sino-Tibetan bawk — white.

Ancestry of “Махмұтбай”, step by step

Махмұтбай traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Kazakh бай

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Kazakhбайrich, wealthy
2Chinese白white
3Proto-Sino-Tibetanbawkwhite

via Kazakh Махмұт

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1KazakhМахмұт—
2Arabicمَحْمُودpraised, laudable
Every word from Proto-Sino-Tibetan bawk →Every word from Chinese 白 →Every word from Kazakh бай →