Hot answers tagged history
7
They do appear to be shortenings, but perhaps not of any particular wording. 大辞林 says they're short for sentences like the following:
こんにちは is short for sentences such as 今日は御機嫌いかがですか
こんばんは is short for sentences such as 今晩はよい晩です
In each case, 大辞林 marks the sentence in quotes with など, implying it doesn't necessarily come from those sentences ...
2
One of the definitions of なる (成る) is to be completed (完成する), or to succeed (成功する), and thus carries the implication of "good". Consequently, ならない then means not completed; not successful; "it won't become (good)". As in English, if you say "That won't do", it has the same question: won't do what? But it has been ingrained in your mind to know that "that ...
Only top voted, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible
