The Spanish word 'hija' (meaning 'daughter') comes from the Old Spanish word 'fija', which in turn derives from the Latin word 'filia' (also meaning 'daughter'). The evolution from Latin to modern Spanish shows two typical sound changes: first, the Latin 'l' became 'j' in Old Spanish (filia → fija), and then the initial 'f' sound changed to 'h' in modern Spanish (fija → hija). This change from 'f' to 'h' at the beginning of words is a characteristic feature of Spanish's development from Latin.

Some related Spanish words include 'hijo' (son), 'hijastro/hijastra' (stepson/stepdaughter), and 'ahijado/ahijada' (godson/goddaughter). All these words share the same Latin root 'filius/filia' and underwent the same sound changes. The word family helps express various family relationships in Spanish.

While English 'daughter' is not related to 'hija', there are some English words that come from the same Latin root 'filia'. These include 'filial' (relating to or befitting a son or daughter), 'affiliate' (to connect or associate with), and 'filiation' (the fact of being a son or daughter). These words maintained the original 'f' sound from Latin, unlike Spanish which changed it to 'h'.