Where does “trôi nổi” come from?

trôi nổi (Vietnamese) comes from Vietnamese nói, from Chinese 內.

trôi nổi (Vietnamese): to drift along; to float around

Definitions

  1. to drift along; to float around

Ancestry of “trôi nổi”, step by step

trôi nổi traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Vietnamese nói

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Vietnamesenóito speak, to talk, to say, to tell
2Chinese內—

via Vietnamese trôi

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Vietnamesetrôito drift, float along
2Proto-Vietic*c-loːj—
Every word from Chinese 內 →Every word from Vietnamese nói →