WEBMar 27, 2024 · Alternatively, Sagart (2011) derives this word from 舀 ( OC *lowʔ, *lu, *lo, “to scoop (hulled grain) from a mortar”). If so, since the Hmong-Mien comparandum only has the derived sense of “rice”, it would be borrowed from Chinese rather than the other way around. The native Min word 粙 may be a variant ( Schuessler, 2007, apud ...