Is there any link between the French (and assumingly other Indo-European languages) use of "de" as a possessive particle and Mandarin Chinese's use of "de" as a possessive particle?

asked 2016-04-20 22:47:57 -0400

I know they do not serve identical purposes, and the French "de" isn't exactly, or really at all, a possessive particle, but it seems strange that out of all the possible combinations of sounds possible by humans and the different complex structures of grammar that that specific sound came to serve a similar purpose in totally different and geographically separated languages (and assumingly other more obscure examples exist). What caused it? Is it just coincidence? A result of cross-cultural contact? Thank you!

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