語源
ごげん · gogen · JLPT N1 · noun
root
🌳 語 (word) + 源 (source) = the source of a word, where it comes from
語 means word and 源 means source or origin, the same 源 as in 源泉 (wellspring). So 語源 is a word's origin, like a root that grows into the word's later forms.