A Japanese servant or young attendant, historically used by European travelers and diplomats in Japan.
From Japanese 'botan' (牡丹), which literally means peony flower, but came to be used as a title for a servant or attendant during Japan's early contact with Western traders and diplomats.
The word 'botan' shows how languages borrow and transform words—Japanese borrowed the word from Portuguese 'rapaz' (boy) but it evolved into something completely different. It's a linguistic ghost from the era when Japan had very limited contact with the outside world!
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