bốn (Vietnamese)
Where does "bốn" come from?
The Vietnamese word "bốn" traces its origins back to the ancient Proto-Austroasiatic root *puənʔ denoting the number four. Over centuries, it evolved through Proto-Vietic as *poːnʔ before eventually settling into its modern form. A testament to its deep roots, the word remains closely related to terms for "four" found in a wide variety of other Austroasiatic languages, such as Khmer, Mon, and Santali.
Full etymology tree
- bốn (Vietnamese), 'four'
- inherited *poːnʔ (Proto-Vietic), 'four'
- inherited *punʔ (Proto-Mon-Khmer)
- inherited *puənʔ (Proto-Austroasiatic), 'four'
- inherited *punʔ (Proto-Mon-Khmer)
- inherited *poːnʔ (Proto-Vietic), 'four'
Ancestors
- *poːnʔ (Proto-Vietic)
- *puənʔ (Proto-Austroasiatic)
Cognates and doublets
- បួន (Khmer)
- puːn² (Mang)
- ပန် (Mon)
- pổn (Muong)
- poan (Pacoh)
Updated July 2026
Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris