Where does “쌀벌레” come from?

쌀벌레 (Korean) comes from Korean 벌레, from Proto-Korean peLkey — bug, insect.

쌀벌레 (Korean): rice weevil

Definitions

  1. rice weevil

Ancestry of “쌀벌레”, step by step

쌀벌레 traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Korean 벌레

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Korean벌레bug, insect
2Proto-KoreanpeLkeybug, insect

via Korean 쌀

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Korean쌀rice; white hulled grains of barley, wheat, etc
Every word from Proto-Korean peLkey →Every word from Korean 벌레 →