Where does “vài ba” come from?

vài ba (Vietnamese) comes from Vietnamese bà, from Chinese 爸, from Chinese 父, from Komodo paʔ, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian əpat, from Proto-Austronesian Səpat — four.

vài ba (Vietnamese): a few

Definitions

  1. a few

Ancestry of “vài ba”, step by step

vài ba traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Vietnamese bà

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Vietnamesebàa grandmother; an old woman; an old lady; you, my...
2Chinese爸—
3Chinese父—
4Komodopaʔfour
5Proto-Malayo-Polynesianəpatfour
6Proto-AustronesianSəpatfour

via Vietnamese vải

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Vietnamesevảicloth, fabric; lychee
2Proto-Vietick-paːs—
3Proto-Mon-Khmerkpaascotton
Every word from Proto-Austronesian Səpat →Every word from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian əpat →Every word from Komodo paʔ →