Where does “China” come from?

China (Romanian) comes from Greek κίνα, from English quina, from Spanish quina, from Latin quina, from Latin quini, from Latin quinque, from Proto-Italic kʷenkʷe, from Proto-Indo-European pénkʷe — five.

Ancestry of “China”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Greekκίναcinchona; cinchona bark; henna
2Englishquinaquinine
3Spanishquinaquinine; toxic wine; double five
4Latinquinanominative neuter plural of quīnī; accusative...
5Latinquinifive each; five at a time
6Latinquinquefive; 5
7Proto-Italickʷenkʷefive
8Proto-Indo-Europeanpénkʷefive

Words derived from “China

Every word from Proto-Indo-European pénkʷe
China — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer