Where does “ja” come from?

ja (Serbo-Croatian) comes from German Ja, from Middle High German ja, from Old High German jā, from Proto-West Germanic jā, from Proto-Germanic ja, from Proto-Indo-European yē — already.

ja (Serbo-Croatian): I; me; yes, yeah

Definitions

  1. I; me; yes, yeah

Ancestry of “ja”, step by step

ja traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via German Ja

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1GermanJaa yes
2Middle High Germanja—
3Old High Germanjā—
4Proto-West Germanicjāyes; thus, so
5Proto-Germanicjayes; thus, so
6Proto-Indo-Europeanyēalready

via Proto-Slavic (j)azъ

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Proto-Slavic(j)azъI
2Proto-Balto-Slavicēź-—
3Proto-Indo-Europeanéǵh₂I
Every word from Proto-Indo-European yē →Every word from Proto-Germanic ja →Every word from Proto-West Germanic jā →