I wanted to describe that 「えっと」 was similar to "Ummm" in English when someone
is trying to think about what they are going to say, but I wasn't even sure if
that was correct. Is that just a generalization? What does 「えっと」actually come
from? Can it be considered to be a word or phrase?
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2012-11-25T22:02:58.830
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question
etymology interjections
Where does 「えっと」 come from?
えっと is just a sound. Yes, it is like "umm" in English and it is used when
you're thinking of what to say, hesitating, or otherwise trying to fill the
silence with something before you speak. As Dono mentioned, you can find えっと's
general form in the
[dictionary](http://www.weblio.jp/content/%E3%81%88%E3%81%88%E3%81%A8), so it
can be considered a word.

There is some discussion of this on the internet
[here](http://detail.chiebukuro.yahoo.co.jp/qa/question_detail/q1453703404),
but this discussion also boils down to it just being a sound.

えっと as just a sound is a satisfactory answer to me in terms of etymology. I'm
not sure if the と in it is related at all to the quotation particle と, but I
have to wonder if anyone is sure.

Basically your description of えっと as "umm" is fine, and the dictionaries
define it as something that you say to think before saying something else.
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2012-11-27T16:07:43.817
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えっと is related to 言えないと, which is no longer said. Over time,it's just become
something we say to fill the silence when thinking, like "anno". In the Edo
Times you would hear people say 言えないと, which would have sounded like,
"yunaito" back then. Think of how 行かないと means "I have to go."
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2012-11-30T21:34:02.627
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answer