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17
votes
1answer
466 views
Did ありがとう come from Portuguese “obrigado”?
I have heard before that ありがとう came from the word "obrigado" in Portuguese. Is this true and is there any evidence to support this, or is it an old wives' tale?
6
votes
2answers
168 views
Etymology of とんでもない
Where did とんでもない (meaning "not at all" or "outrageous!") come from?
Could it be 飛んでもない ? ("will not even jump/fly" in a similar way how "When pigs fly" is considered a remark for something ...
4
votes
1answer
143 views
Does 被【かぶ】る have any relation to “cover”?
Topic. I've heard/seen somewhere that 被【かぶ】る was "gairaigo-fied" (?) from the English word "cover" (similar to ダブる or デモる), and then presumably given ateji from 被【おお】う since the meanings overlap so ...
5
votes
1answer
272 views
Phoenix: 不死鳥【ふしちょう】, 鳳凰【ほうおう】, 鳳/鵬【おおとり】, フェニックス… How many lives does this bird have!?
All of the following words and kanji (and a few more obscure ones) seem to be used in Japanese, to describe a bird that is translated by "Phoenix" in English:
不死鳥【ふしちょう】
鳳凰【ほうおう】
鳳【おおとり】/鵬【おおとり】
...
11
votes
3answers
248 views
How are 化け物, 妖怪, 幽霊, etc. related to each other?
In the past few years, reading light novels and the like, I have come across many different terms for ghosts, spirits, monsters, etc. in Japanese, and I'm wondering how they relate to each other. What ...
