Tsunami — Lexography

Journey of meaning

4 forms

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The tsunami journey, in text

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津 · Japanese
noun · Japanese
Transliteration: tsu
Harbor or port.. Harbor or port.
Date not yet researched — No word-specific date established in the inspected sources.
Japanese reference region — Glottolog language reference point; not an origin, borrowing site or territorial boundary.
Japanese 津 (tsu) is the harbor/port element of tsunami. Etymology
Japanese 津波 (tsunami) combines tsu “harbor” and nami “wave.” Etymology and Noun
Glottolog supplies the reference coordinates for Japanese. LanguageTable row nucl1643
波 · Japanese
noun · Japanese
Transliteration: nami
Wave.. Wave.
Date not yet researched — No word-specific date established in the inspected sources.
Japanese reference region — Glottolog language reference point; not an origin, borrowing site or territorial boundary.
Japanese 波 (nami) is the wave element of tsunami. Etymology
Japanese 津波 (tsunami) combines tsu “harbor” and nami “wave.” Etymology and Noun
Glottolog supplies the reference coordinates for Japanese. LanguageTable row nucl1643
津波 · Japanese
noun · Japanese
Transliteration: tsunami
Harbor wave; a large sea wave.. Harbor wave; a large sea wave.
Date not yet researched — No word-specific date established in the inspected sources.
Japanese reference region — Glottolog language reference point; not an origin, borrowing site or territorial boundary.
Japanese 津 (tsu) is the harbor/port element of tsunami. Etymology
Japanese 波 (nami) is the wave element of tsunami. Etymology
Japanese 津波 (tsunami) combines tsu “harbor” and nami “wave.” Etymology and Noun
English tsunami is reported from 1896 in reference to the wave that struck Japan on June 15 of that year. tsunami(n.)
The English entry supplies English regional readings and the wave sense. English > Pronunciation
Glottolog supplies the reference coordinates for Japanese. LanguageTable row nucl1643
tsunami · English
noun · English
Reading: tsoo-NAH-mee
A very large destructive sea wave or wave train.. A very large destructive sea wave or wave train.
1896 · English tsunami context — Reported English publication context.
English reference region / Britain — Glottolog language reference point; not an origin, borrowing site or territorial boundary.
Japanese 津波 (tsunami) combines tsu “harbor” and nami “wave.” Etymology and Noun
English tsunami is reported from 1896 in reference to the wave that struck Japan on June 15 of that year. tsunami(n.)
The English entry supplies English regional readings and the wave sense. English > Pronunciation
Glottolog supplies the reference coordinates for English. LanguageTable row stan1293

Relationships

tsu → tsunami: derivation, documented. Japanese tsu is the harbor element of tsunami. Etymology Etymology and Noun

nami → tsunami: derivation, documented. Japanese nami is the wave element of tsunami. Etymology Etymology and Noun

tsunami → tsunami: borrowing, documented. English tsunami is borrowed from Japanese 津波. Etymology and Noun tsunami(n.)English > Pronunciation

Inspect the evidence 9 claims

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01Glottolog supplies the reference coordinates for Japanese.
Source
Glottolog 5.3 — language reference coordinatesHammarström, Forkel, Haspelmath & Bank; Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary AnthropologyLanguageTable row nucl1643
Source passage
Reference record
nucl1643 · Japanese · Latitude 35.0 · Longitude 135.0
LanguageTable row nucl1643; Name, Latitude, Longitude
Qualification Reference only
Language reference coordinates, not a word origin, borrowing site, historical territory or population distribution.
What Lexography infers
Use this point only to orient Japanese reference region; no historical movement is inferred.
Checked 2026-09-11 · revision 072ca0d0410039fb8b779be8fc165bac575d2cda. CC BY 4.0; selected coordinates, rounded for regional orientation
02Japanese 津 (tsu) is the harbor/port element of tsunami.
Source
Wiktionary — 津波Wiktionary contributorsEtymology
Source passage
Source summary · not a quotation
Japanese 津 (tsu) is the harbor/port element of tsunami.
Etymology
Qualification Source-supported
The cited section supports this bounded lexical statement; it does not establish every use, date or transmission event.
What Lexography infers
Lexography selects this account for the named form or sense; wording and presentation are editorial.
Checked 2026-09-14. Wiktionary CC BY-SA 4.0 / GFDL; current page inspected, attributed summaries only; no full article redistributed.
03Glottolog supplies the reference coordinates for Japanese.
Source
Glottolog 5.3 — language reference coordinatesHammarström, Forkel, Haspelmath & Bank; Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary AnthropologyLanguageTable row nucl1643
Source passage
Reference record
nucl1643 · Japanese · Latitude 35.0 · Longitude 135.0
LanguageTable row nucl1643; Name, Latitude, Longitude
Qualification Reference only
Language reference coordinates, not a word origin, borrowing site, historical territory or population distribution.
What Lexography infers
Use this point only to orient Japanese reference region; no historical movement is inferred.
Checked 2026-09-11 · revision 072ca0d0410039fb8b779be8fc165bac575d2cda. CC BY 4.0; selected coordinates, rounded for regional orientation
04Japanese 波 (nami) is the wave element of tsunami.
Source
Wiktionary — 津波Wiktionary contributorsEtymology
Source passage
Source summary · not a quotation
Japanese 波 (nami) is the wave element of tsunami.
Etymology
Qualification Source-supported
The cited section supports this bounded lexical statement; it does not establish every use, date or transmission event.
What Lexography infers
Lexography selects this account for the named form or sense; wording and presentation are editorial.
Checked 2026-09-14. Wiktionary CC BY-SA 4.0 / GFDL; current page inspected, attributed summaries only; no full article redistributed.
05Glottolog supplies the reference coordinates for Japanese.
Source
Glottolog 5.3 — language reference coordinatesHammarström, Forkel, Haspelmath & Bank; Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary AnthropologyLanguageTable row nucl1643
Source passage
Reference record
nucl1643 · Japanese · Latitude 35.0 · Longitude 135.0
LanguageTable row nucl1643; Name, Latitude, Longitude
Qualification Reference only
Language reference coordinates, not a word origin, borrowing site, historical territory or population distribution.
What Lexography infers
Use this point only to orient Japanese reference region; no historical movement is inferred.
Checked 2026-09-11 · revision 072ca0d0410039fb8b779be8fc165bac575d2cda. CC BY 4.0; selected coordinates, rounded for regional orientation
06Japanese 津波 (tsunami) combines tsu “harbor” and nami “wave.”
Source
Wiktionary — 津波Wiktionary contributorsEtymology and Noun
Source passage
Source summary · not a quotation
Japanese 津波 (tsunami) combines tsu “harbor” and nami “wave.”
Etymology and Noun
Qualification Source-supported
The cited section supports this bounded lexical statement; it does not establish every use, date or transmission event.
What Lexography infers
Show the compound before the English borrowing.
Checked 2026-09-14. Wiktionary CC BY-SA 4.0 / GFDL; current page inspected, attributed summaries only; no full article redistributed.
07Glottolog supplies the reference coordinates for English.
Source
Glottolog 5.3 — language reference coordinatesHammarström, Forkel, Haspelmath & Bank; Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary AnthropologyLanguageTable row stan1293
Source passage
Reference record
stan1293 · English · Latitude 53.0 · Longitude -1.0
LanguageTable row stan1293; Name, Latitude, Longitude
Qualification Reference only
Language reference coordinates, not a word origin, borrowing site, historical territory or population distribution.
What Lexography infers
Use this point only to orient English reference region / Britain; no historical movement is inferred.
Checked 2026-09-11 · revision 072ca0d0410039fb8b779be8fc165bac575d2cda. CC BY 4.0; selected coordinates, rounded for regional orientation
08English tsunami is reported from 1896 in reference to the wave that struck Japan on June 15 of that year.
Source
tsunami — EtymologyOnline Etymology Dictionarytsunami(n.)
Source passage
Source summary · not a quotation
English tsunami is reported from 1896 in reference to the wave that struck Japan on June 15 of that year.
tsunami(n.)
Qualification Qualified
The 1896 date is an English written/contextual use and not the date of the Japanese compound’s origin.
What Lexography infers
Keep the Japanese compound and English naturalization distinct.
Checked 2026-09-14. Linked source retains its copyright. Brief original factual paraphrases only; no full article redistributed.
09The English entry supplies English regional readings and the wave sense.
Source
Wiktionary — tsunamiWiktionary contributorsEnglish > Pronunciation
Source passage
Source summary · not a quotation
The English entry supplies English regional readings and the wave sense.
English > Pronunciation
Qualification Source-supported
The cited section supports this bounded lexical statement; it does not establish every use, date or transmission event.
What Lexography infers
Lexography selects this account for the named form or sense; wording and presentation are editorial.
Checked 2026-09-14. Wiktionary CC BY-SA 4.0 / GFDL; current page inspected, attributed summaries only; no full article redistributed.