Where does “Kitaj” come from?
Kitaj (Polish) comes from Russian Кита́й, from Old East Slavic Китаи, from Old Turkic 𐰶𐰃𐱃𐰪, from Khitan 𘱿𘲫.
Ancestry of “Kitaj”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Russian | Кита́й | China |
| 2 | Old East Slavic | Китаи | — |
| 3 | Old Turkic | 𐰶𐰃𐱃𐰪 | — |
| 4 | Khitan | 𘱿𘲫 | — |