Where does “Nôm” come from?

Nôm (Vietnamese) comes from Old Portuguese non, from Latin nōn, from Old Latin noenum, from Proto-Indo-European óynos — one; single.

Nôm (Vietnamese): written in Vietnamese using chữ Nôm

Definitions

  1. written in Vietnamese using chữ Nôm

Ancestry of “Nôm”, step by step

Nôm traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.

via Old Portuguese non

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Portuguesenonno, not
2Latinnōnnot
3Old Latinnoenum—
4Proto-Indo-Europeanóynosone; single

via Chinese 南

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Chinese南south
2Proto-Sino-Tibetang-namsky, sun

via Vietnamese đóm

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Vietnameseđómfirefly

Words derived from “Nôm”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European óynos →Every word from Old Latin noenum →Every word from Latin nōn →