Where does “biển báo” come from?

biển báo (Vietnamese) comes from Vietnamese báo, from Chinese 豹, from Chinese 駁, from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *prawk — to be speckled, variegated, spotted.

biển báo (Vietnamese): a traffic sign; a road sign

Definitions

  1. a traffic sign; a road sign

Ancestry of “biển báo”, step by step

biển báo traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Vietnamese báo

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Vietnamesebáoa leopard; a spotted panther; a jaguar or a snow...
2Chinese
3Chinese
4Proto-Sino-Tibetan*prawkto be speckled, variegated, spotted

via Vietnamese biển

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Vietnamesebiểnsea; ocean; sea; sign; signboard; placard; title...
Every word from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *prawkEvery word from Chinese Every word from Chinese