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Is there a reason why the passive and the potential form in Japanese are
identical (at least for える/いる verbs)? I mean, does one etymologically derive
from the other? Or were they perhaps modelled on a similar original form? If
so, how does the え form for other (non-える/いる) verbs fit in?
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question
conjugations passive-voice classical-japanese potential-form old-japanese
Is there a reason why the passive and the potential form are identical (at least for える/いる verbs)?
Etymologically, various usages of れる/られる derived from one base meaning, "
**without someone's will** ". In modern Japanese, れる/られる is still sometimes
used in this sense (known as 自発【じはつ】 or "spontaneous"). See: [Why is the
passive form used in this
sentence?](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/q/42680/5010)

> 故郷【こきょう】が思【おも】い出【だ】される。 I (spontaneously) remember my hometown. (I didn't
> intentionally try to recall that, but it occurred to me.)

Then the "passive" sense came into use. I think the reason is straightforward;
the passive voice is basically used to describe something that happened to you
without your will. This also explains why Japanese passive voice often implies
that you were negatively affected (aka
[迷惑【めいわく】の受【う】け身【み】](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/a/1777/5010) or the
"suffering passive").

> 雨【あめ】に降【ふ】られた。 Rain fell (against my will, and I was bothered).

The "potential" sense of れる/られる originally derived from the negation of
自発【じはつ】. Something like "it never (naturally) happens that ～" or "not in the
situation where ～" eventually became "cannot". The non-negative potential
sense (i.e., "can") followed.

> (archaic Japanese) 弓矢【ゆみや】して射【い】られじ。  
>  It never happens that you shoot them with an arrow.  
>  → You cannot shoot them with an arrow.  
>  ≒ (modern Japanese) 弓矢【ゆみや】で射【い】られない。

れる/られる also has an "honorific" meaning. This is also an extension of "not my
own will" (i.e., it's the will of "your highness", etc.).

(Note that those shifts in meaning actually happened long ago when [archaic
Japanese](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classical_Japanese_language) was used.
[る](https://kobun.weblio.jp/content/%E3%82%8B)/[らる](https://kobun.weblio.jp/content/%E3%82%89%E3%82%8B)
were the precursors of modern れる/られる.)
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answer