hutong

The story

1. Mongolian · derived fromхудаг
2. Middle Mongol · derived fromᠭᠤᠳᠤᠮ“corridor, passage, passageway”
3. Mongolian · derived fromгудам
4. Mandarin · borrowed from衚衕 /胡同
5. English todayhutong

Borrowed from the Hanyu Pinyin romanization of Mandarin 衚衕 /胡同 (hútòng), 胡同 (hútòng, “narrow street”), probably: * from Mongolian гудам (gudam), from Middle Mongol ᠭᠤᠳᠤᠮ (ɣudum, “corridor, passage, passageway”); or * from Mongolian худаг (xudag), ᠬᠤᠳᠳᠤᠭ (qudduɣ, “water well”) (from the prevalence of wells where people lived).

First known use, by meaning

• from 19th c. A narrow alley or street in a traditional residential district of a city in China, especially Beijing.