うるさい

• (informal, terminal or attributive form) うるせえ (urusee)
• (informal, emphatic, terminal or attributive form) うっせえ (ussee)

Probably originally a compound of 心 (uru, “heart, mind”, vowel-shifted from regular reading ura, cognate with 裏 (ura, “the behind or inside of something”)) +‎ 狭し (sashi, “tight; narrow”, Classical and Old Japanese, cognate and synonym of modern 狭い (semai)), from the sense that something is so overwhelming that one feels pressured to yield or submit in some way.^[1]

The earliest texts used this word to mean something more like "overwhelmed by how completely thorough something is (in a positive sense), or by how excessive and repetitive something is (in a negative sense)".^[1][2] Over time, the term was used less and less in a positive sense, and the focus from the late Heian period gradually became a negative sense of oppression and annoyance from something troublesome, repetitive, or overwhelming.^[1] Usage then shifted further, such that the term described not the speaker's own internal state, but rather the troublesome quality of the cause of the emotional response.

First cited to works from the early 900s.^[1][2]

• (Tokyo) うるさい [ùrúsáꜜì] (Nakadaka – [3])^[3][4][5]
• IPA^(key): [ɯ̟ɾɯ̟sa̠i]

うるさい • (urusai) -i (adverbial うるさく (urusaku))

1. [late 900s – Kamakura period] overwhelmingly thorough (often in a positive way); excessive, repetitive (in a negative way)
   1. [from early 900s] (by extension from the "thorough" sense) so thoroughly knowledgeable and particular about something as to be annoying to others: picky, nitpicking, fussy

      字(じ)体(たい)にうるさい

      jitai ni urusai

      picky about glyph shape

      味(あじ)にうるさい

      aji ni urusai

      picky about flavor

   2. [from late 900s] pushy, bossy, overly particular and demanding

      うるさい連(れん)中(ちゅう)だ。

      Urusai renchū da.

      Bossy guys.

2. [early 1000s – ???] excellent of technique (particularly for a performance)

   Synonym: (Classical) うるせし (uruseshi)

3. [late 1100s – ???] extremely strained, faked, insincere, affected
4. [from early 1100s] oppressive and annoying in a surrounding and overwhelming way

   Synonyms: 煩わしい (wazurawashii, “troublesome, annoying, irksome, nuisance”), 鬱陶しい (uttoushii, “annoying and oppressive, overtones of depressing”), 喧しい (yakamashii, “oppressively loud, noisy”), うざったい (uzattai), うざっこい (uzakkoi), うざい (uzai)

   1. noisy, loud

      外(そと)がうるさい。

      Soto ga urusai.

      It is noisy outside.

   2. annoying, irritating
5. [from early 1900s] troublesome, bothersome, irksome (usually in reference to having to do something)

   Synonyms: 面倒 (mendō, “trouble, bother, tiresome”), 煩わしい (wazurawashii, “troublesome, annoying, irksome, nuisance”), うざったい (uzattai), うざっこい (uzakkoi), うざい (uzai)

6. [from early 1600s] dirty, messy, causing a bad feeling

   Synonyms: 汚い (kitanai), いや (iya), うざったい (uzattai), うざっこい (uzakkoi), うざい (uzai)

• The annoying, irritating and loud, noisy senses are probably the most common in modern usage.

うるさい • (urusai) 

1. (figuratively) shut up; stop it

   うるさい！

   Urusai!

   You are annoying! / That's annoying! → Shut up! / Stop it!

• → Chinese: 無路賽 / 无路赛 (wúlùsài)

• "Urusai" entry at the 語源由来辞典 (Gogen Yurai Jiten, “Etymology Derivation Dictionary”, in Japanese)