出来事
できごと · dekigoto · JLPT N3 · noun
happening
📰 出来事 = come out (出来る) + thing (事): something that came out, a happening
出来る (dekiru) originally meant to come into being or to happen. Add 事 (koto, a thing or matter, voiced to goto), and 出来事 is a thing that came about: an incident or event. It is the kind of thing that ends up in the news.
出 — foot 止 emerging from enclosure 凵
出 is a pictograph showing a foot or plant stepping out of a hollow or enclosure, depicting the act of going forth. The original sense of 'coming out' or 'emerging' has remained stable since oracle bone script. It now broadly means 'to exit, go out, or produce.'
来 — pictograph of a wheat plant with grain heads
来 originally depicted a stalk of wheat with drooping grain heads, and meant 'wheat' in oracle bone script. It was later borrowed phonetically to write the unrelated verb 'to come,' which became its dominant meaning. The original 'wheat' sense was taken over by 麥 (now 麦).
事 — hand 又 holding a banner/tablet on a pole
Originally a pictograph of a hand (又) grasping a pole or ceremonial banner used by an official, depicting the act of conducting court business. From this it came to mean 'affair, matter, business, service.' It shares an ancient origin with 史 (scribe) and 吏 (official).