Where does “なりけり” come from?

なりけり (Old Japanese) comes from Old Japanese けり — auxiliary verb indicating past tense: -ed.

なりけり (Old Japanese): auxiliary verb indicating one's personal recollection about something heard before: it was, it is said

Definitions

  1. auxiliary verb indicating one's personal recollection about something heard before: it was, it is said

Ancestry of “なりけり”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Japaneseけりauxiliary verb indicating past tense: -ed
Every word from Old Japanese けり →