'Ramen' is Chinese 'pullednoodles' that Japan reinvented — instant ramen (1958) conquered the planet.
Definition
Quick-cooking noodles, typically served in a broth with meat and vegetables.
The Full Story
Japanese (from Chinese)20th century (in English)well-attested
From Japanese 'ramen' (written in katakana as ラーメン), borrowed from Chinese 'lamian' (pullednoodles), a compound of 'la' (to pull, to stretch, to draw out) + 'mian' (noodle, flour, wheat flour product). The noodles aremade by hand-pulling and repeatedly stretching dough into long thin strands — the name is a precise description of the manufacturing technique. Chinese 'la' belongs to the Sino-Tibetan familyand has no Indo-European cognates
Did you know?
Ramen was originally called 'Shina soba' (Chinese noodles) in Japan. The dish was introduced by Chinese immigrants in the late 1800s but was transformed in Japan through regional variations: Hakata tonkotsu (pork bone broth), Sapporo miso, Tokyo shoyu (soy sauce), Kitakata. Instant ramen was invented by Momofuku Ando in 1958, becoming one of the most consumed foods on Earth — over 100 billion servings consumed worldwide annually
by Momofuku Ando in 1958, industrialised the form and spread it globally. Ramen entered English in the 20th century, first in Japanese-American communities, then worldwide as Japanese cuisine gained international prestige. Key roots: lā (拉) (Chinese: "to pull, to stretch"), miàn (麵) (Chinese: "noodle, flour").