Etymograph

English

Tibet

Tibet may come from Old Turkic 𐱅𐰇𐰯𐰇𐱅.

  1. Old Turkicmodern𐱅𐰇𐰯𐰇𐱅Töpütby way of Classical Persian تبتuncertain
  2. Englishearliest quotation 1922Tibet

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed

Earlier history uncertain.

Lineage

  1. Old Turkicmodern𐱅𐰇𐰯𐰇𐱅Töpütby way of Classical Persian تبتuncertain
  2. Englishearliest quotation 1922Tibet

Earliest quotation: 1922, Bertrand Russell, The Problem of China: “The estimated population of the Chinese Empire (exclusive of…”

The story

In one proposed etymology the ultimate origin is Tibetan བོད (Bod), used in the compound name Tibetan སྟོད་བོད (stod bod, “Upper Tibet”), pronounced Tö-pöt, from སྟོད (stod, “upper, higher”) + བོད (bod, “Tibet”). In another proposal, the name comes via Classical Mongolian [script needed] (Töpüt) from an alteration of Old Turkic 𐱅𐰇𐰯𐰇 (töpü, “height, summit”). Bialek instead derives the name from Old Tibetan དཔོན (dpon, “leader, ruler”) + Old Turkic -𐱅 (-t²) plural suffix and a epenthetic vowel to break up the non-Turkic initial consonant cluster [tp]; according to her, Middle Chinese 吐蕃 (thu^X bjon) comes from the same source.

Every English word from Old Turkic 𐱅𐰇𐰯𐰇𐱅

Today it means

name A geographic region in Central Asia (mostly in China), the homeland of the Tibetan people, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau.

Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.

Etymograph / Old Turkic 𐱅𐰇𐰯𐰇𐱅 / Tibet

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