You can see the etymology of tycoon at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Business_magnate#Etymology http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Business_magnate#Etymology The bo

You can see the etymology of tycoon at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Business_magnate#Etymology http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Business_magnate#Etymology The borrowing pre-dates the Hepburn romanization system which wasn't developed until the 1880's.