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First attested in the Gugeupganibang eonhae (救急簡易方諺解 / 구급간이방언해), 1489, as Middle Koreanᄇᆞᆰ〯쥐〮 (Yale: pǒlk-cwúy), seemingly a compound of some *ᄇᆞᆰ〯(*pǒlk) + 쥐〮(cwúy, “rat”).
The first compound is commonly theorized to be ᄇᆞᆰ(pòlk-, “to be bright”), possibly reflecting a belief (prior to the discovery of echolocation) that bats had bright eyes that allowed them to fly in the dark.[1] However, the tones do not match, making the connection somewhat dubious.