The Etymology of Soyjak

The Etymology of Soyjak *bhāt- Proto-Indo-European, noun. “Father, elder brother, brother.” ↓ *bhō- Proto-Germanic, noun. “Brother, close male relation.” ↓ *bojō Proto-Germanic, noun. “Younger brother, young male relation.” ↓ *bōjō Proto-West Germanic, noun. “Someone meaning as above.” ↓ *boia Old English, noun. “Boy.” ↓ bōye Middle English, noun. “Servant, commoner, knave, boy.” ↓ boy English, noun. “A young male; or, a male of low station.” 醬油 Chinese, noun. Means “soy sauce” (literally, “jiang thick sauce + oil”) ↓ 醤油 (1400s) Japanese, noun. Means “soy sauce” (literally, thick paste + oil). ↓ そや Japanese (Kagoshima dialect), noun, topicalised form of (そや, “soy sauce”). ↓ soja Dutch, noun. Borrowed from Japanese. ↓ soy (1670s) English, noun. ↓ Soyboy (2010s, neologism, derogatory) English, noun. “Effeminate man.” *woyh₁-o-s Proto-Indo-European, “To drive away, chase, pursue” ↓ *wajas Proto-Balto-Slavic, noun. “Soldier.” ↓ vojь Proto-Slavic, noun. “Soldier.” ↓ woj Polish, noun. (obsolete) “Warrior”. ↓ *akъb Proto-Slavic, suffix. Used to form noun denoting a carrier of a property. ↓ ak Polish, suffix. Used to form demonstrative and colloquial nouns. ↓ wojak Polish, noun. (somewhat informal) “Soldier” ↓ Wojak (2010s, neologism) Simplistic drawing of a bald man. Named after Polish krautchan user “wojak”; the username is from Polish wojak = “Soldier, fighter”. ↓ Soyboy Wojak (late 2010s, neologism), noun. Renderings of Wojak depicting an effeminate man. ↓ Soyjak (late 2010s, neologism) Soypjak, noun. From Soy[boy] Wojak. An image of an effeminate man giving wistful expression in the art style of the original Wojak.

A vertical etymology chart humorously traces “Soyjak” through supposed linguistic ancestors of “soy,” “boy,” and “Wojak.” The joke presents the internet meme character as if it were the result of a serious historical word evolution, parodying scholarly etymology diagrams and the stereotype of the effeminate soy-drinking Wojak. EN: A vertical etymology chart humorously traces “Soyjak” through supposed linguistic ancestors of “soy,” “boy,” and “Wojak.” The joke presents the internet meme character as if it were the result of a serious historical word evolution, parodying scholarly etymology diagrams and the stereotype of the effeminate soy-drinking Wojak.

• @rzeczyzabawne / 12687 2023-10-12