Where does “ông ngoại” come from?

ông ngoại (Vietnamese) comes from Vietnamese ông, from Proto-Vietic ʔɔːŋ, from Proto-Mon-Khmer ʔuŋ — wasp; hornet.

ông ngoại (Vietnamese): maternal grandfather

Definitions

  1. maternal grandfather

Ancestry of “ông ngoại”, step by step

ông ngoại traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Vietnamese ông

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Vietnameseônggrandfather; grandpa; Sir; Mr; you, my...
2Proto-Vieticʔɔːŋhoney bee
3Proto-Mon-Khmerʔuŋwasp; hornet

via Vietnamese ngoại

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1VietnamesengoạiSynonym of ngoài; foreign; related to the...
2Middle Chinese外—
Every word from Proto-Mon-Khmer ʔuŋ →Every word from Proto-Vietic ʔɔːŋ →Every word from Vietnamese ông →