Where does “te” come from?
te (Tagalog) comes from Spanish té, from Latin tē, from Latin tū, from Proto-Italic tū, from Proto-Indo-European túh₂ — you, thou.
Ancestry of “te”, step by step
te traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Spanish té
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Spanish | té | tea |
| 2 | Latin | tē | — |
| 3 | Latin | tū | you (singular); thou |
| 4 | Proto-Italic | tū | you |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | túh₂ | you, thou |
via Chinese 戴
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chinese | 戴 | — |