撫子

Meaning: “stroke” + “child”

⟨nade si ko₁⟩ → /nadeɕiko/ From Old Japanese, first attested in the Izumo-no-kuni Fudoki (733 CE). Originally derived from 撫で (nade), the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, stem or continuative form) of classical verb 撫づ (nadu), modern 撫でる (naderu, “to brush, stroke, or caress gently”) + し (-shi, continuative suffix) + 子 (-ko, diminutive and feminine suffix).