Where does “lính thuỷ” come from?

lính thuỷ (Vietnamese) comes from Vietnamese thuỷ, from Middle Chinese 水, from Proto-Sino-Tibetan lwi(j) — flow; stream.

lính thuỷ (Vietnamese): sailor

Definitions

  1. sailor

Ancestry of “lính thuỷ”, step by step

lính thuỷ traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Vietnamese thuỷ

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Vietnamesethuỷwater; Water, one of the Wu Xing
2Middle Chinese水—
3Proto-Sino-Tibetanlwi(j)flow; stream

via Vietnamese lính

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Vietnameselínha soldier; a subordinate, a low-class personnel
2Chinese靈—
Every word from Proto-Sino-Tibetan lwi(j) →Every word from Middle Chinese 水 →Every word from Vietnamese thuỷ →