Where does “四” come from?

四 (Middle Chinese) comes from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *pV-lij — four.

Ancestry of “四”, step by step

四 traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Proto-Sino-Tibetan *pV-lij

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Proto-Sino-Tibetan*pV-lijfour

via Sino-Tibetan *pV-lij

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Sino-Tibetan*pV-lij—

Words derived from “四”

Every word from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *pV-lij →