Where does “miền Bắc” come from?

miền Bắc (Vietnamese) comes from Vietnamese miền, from Chinese 面, from Proto-Sino-Tibetan s-mjal — face.

miền Bắc (Vietnamese): northern region

Definitions

  1. northern region

Ancestry of “miền Bắc”, step by step

miền Bắc traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Vietnamese miền

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Vietnamesemiềnregion, district; domain
2Chinese面—
3Proto-Sino-Tibetans-mjalface

via Vietnamese Bắc

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1VietnameseBắcNorth
2Middle Chinese北—
Every word from Proto-Sino-Tibetan s-mjal →