犬

犬吠

the barking of a dog, or the sound thereof


馬

Second grade kyōiku kanji (romanization)

牛馬

a small breed of horse, extinct since 1947


馬

馬 (canonical)
馬 (canonical)
uma (romanization)
頭 (counter)

Horse
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
Nihon Shoki
Tokyo dialect
Tōkai–Tōsan dialects
ja:馬

From Old Japanese. First attested in the Nihon Shoki of 720 CE.
The initial m sound was apparently emphasized, possibly similar to *mma, becoming then uma or muma, via processes also seen in the word 梅 (ume, mume, “plum”). However, Pellard simply reconstructs Proto-Japonic *uma and treats the mentioned processes as secondary.
The ma sound denoting "horse" is common to a number of languages of central Asia, where horses were first domesticated, which has led some to speculate about a possible cognate root (but no consensus on any kind of relation exists). Compare Manchu ᠮᠣᡵᡳᠨ (morin, “horse”), Mongolian морь (morʹ, “horse”), Korean 말 (mal, “horse”), Mandarin 馬 /马 (mǎ, “horse”), and Proto-Indo-European *márkos (“horse”) and descendants such as Irish marc (“horse”, archaic) or English mare (“female horse”). More at *márkos.

a sawhorse: a four-leg stand made of wood or iron for supporting other materials


馬

Shift from uma form, becoming more common starting from the Heian Period. This change later reverted, and muma is now considered obsolete.

阿志加良能 美佐可多麻波理 可閇理美須 阿例波久江由久 阿良志乎母 多志夜波婆可流 不破乃世伎 久江弖和波由久 牟麻能都米 都久志能佐伎尓 知麻利為弖 阿例波伊波々牟 母呂々々波 佐祁久等麻乎須 可閇利久麻弖尓

[I] received [the permission of the deity to cross] the Asigara slope, and I will cross over [it] without looking back. Will a tough man hesitate to depart? I will go crossing Pupa barrier. [I] will stay and dwell at the cape in Tukushi (9) [that is easy to wear off like] a horse’s hoof, and I will pray [and I] will ask [the deities] that everybody [at home would be] safe until return.

c. 935 Tosa Nikki
ふぢはらのときざね、ふなぢなれど、むまのはなむけす。

The truth of the time in Fujiwara, even if [I'm] at the boat road, [I] exchange my horse nose (su element is unknown).

c. 935 Tosa Nikki
けふはあをむまをおもへど、かひなし。

Today even thinking about the blue horse [New Year's festival] is in vain.


馬

Possibly from preform *Nma, ultimately from Proto-Japonic *Cma.


HIV

ja-noun

HIV(エイチアイブイ) or HIV(エッチアイブイ) • (eichiaibui or etchiaibui)

HIV (canonical)
HIV (canonical)
eichiaibui (romanization)
etchiaibui (romanization)

人免疫不全ウイルス 人免疫不全ウイルス#Japanese

human immunodeficiency virus
human immunodeficiency virus#English

Synonym of 人免疫不全ウイルス (hito men'eki fuzen uirusu, “human immunodeficiency virus”); HIV


猫

猫 (canonical)
猫 (canonical)
neko (romanization)
匹 (counter)

Nagahama-Santō (Nagahama-Maibara) Shiga Prefecture

Yuki (Jinsekikōgen), Hiroshima Prefecture

Tokuji (Yamaguchi), Yamaguchi Prefecture

Kagami (Yatsushiro), Kumamoto Prefecture

Minna Island (Tarama, Okinawa)
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
Shin'yaku Kegonkyō Ongi Shiki
Tarama, Okinawa

⟨neko₁⟩ → /neko/
From Old Japanese. Cognate with Miyako にか (nika, “cat”, Tarama and Minna dialects) via unknown Japonic substratum.
A comparison of accent patterns between the dialects shows some confusion (see dialectal data):
* One group of dialects behaves as if was the Heian Kyoto accent pattern: many dialects with the Tokyo type accent, including the standard Japanese in Tokyo, pronounce this word with an pitch pattern, and in some non-mainstream Keihan type dialects as well, this word has a corresponding pitch pattern.
* Another group of dialects behaves as if was the Heian Kyoto accent pattern: the mainstream Keihan type dialects pronounce this word with an pitch pattern, and in a few of the Tokyo type dialects, this word has a corresponding pitch pattern.
As a result, this term is one example of words that have the same pitch accent pattern between Tokyo and Osaka/Kyoto. The confusion seems to be due to an impression that the term comes from a compound word origin.
One theory explains that neko is shortened from earlier 猫(ねこま) (nekoma) , but neko has a first appearance in literature earlier than that for nekoma.
First attested in the Shin'yaku Kegonkyō Ongi Shiki of 794.

cog

猫が二匹居る。

家には猫が三匹います。

猫狸 [...] ニ又漢云野貍、倭言上尼古、下多〻既

Cat and raccoon dog, … both of them are called 野貍 (yari) in Chinese; the former is called 尼古 (⟨neko₁⟩ → neko) while the latter is called 多〻既 (⟨tatake₂⟩ → tatake) in Japanese.

eating anything hot due to having an overly sensitive tongue


猫

Shinsen Jikyō
Wamyō Ruijushō
Yupian
ja:和名類聚抄
ja:本草和名
ja:河海抄

According to the 和名類聚抄 (Wamyō Ruijushō), 931–938, 猫(ねこ) (neko) is short for this word.
:
:
猫: 野王案、猫、音苗、禰古麻、下總本有和名二字興河海抄引此合、本草和名同訓、或省云禰古、新撰字鏡、狸、禰古、按狸一名猫、見本草和名、似虎而小、熊捕鼠為糧
Cat. According to Yewang, cat, sound-reading myō, [Japanese reading] nekoma; later compendiums have a two character Japanese name- perhaps the Rivers and Seas Annotations references this compilation, the Honzō wamyō [has] a kun homophone, certain omissions call it 'neko', [in the] Shinsen Jikyō 'tanuki'- [read] neko, to check 'tanuki' [as] one name [for] a cat - see the Honzō wamyō; like a tiger but small, the creature catches rats for food
One theory describes the first mora as onomatopoeia for the sound a cat makes (cf. にゃ (nya); compare English mew, meow). The last two morae might accord with 熊(くま) (kuma, “bear”) if it were from Proto-Japonic *koma (class 2.3 ), in the sense of "four-legged animal". The Heian Kyoto accent of this word is ; note that in compound words for species names, the pitch pattern may be simplified to <-HL> when the final element is a 2-mora noun (e.g. 青海苔 (aonori, “green laver”, < àwònórì < *àwò-nòrì), and the presence or absence of this phenomenon could explain the accent confusion in neko.
However, nekoma is first cited to 918 in the 本草和名 (Honzō Wamyō, the oldest surviving dictionary of medicine in Japan), while neko is first attested in 794.
:
:
家狸、一名猫、和名禰古末
A house raccoon; also called a cat; the Japanese name is nekoma.

ux

Cat. According to Yewang, cat, sound-reading myō, 􂀿Japanese reading􂁀 nekoma; later compendiums have a two character Japanese name- perhaps the Rivers and Seas Annotations references this compilation, the Honzō wamyō 􂀿has􂁀 a kun homophone, certain omissions call it 'neko', 􂀿in the􂁀 Shinsen Jikyō 'tanuki'- 􂀿read􂁀 neko, to check 'tanuki' 􂀿as􂁀 one name 􂀿for􂁀 a cat - see the Honzō wamyō; like a tiger but small, the creature catches rats for food

家狸、一名猫、和名禰古末


狗

狗 (canonical)
enu (romanization)
wenu (romanization)
ゑぬ (hiragana historical)

First cited to the Wamyō Ruijushō of 934 CE.
Ultimate derivation uncertain. Theories include a fusion of わ (*wa-, diminutive prefix?) + 犬 (inu, “dog”), an ancient nativized borrowing from Old Chinese 犬 (OC *kʰʷeːnʔ, “dog”), in turn, from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *d-kʷəj-n, or an unraised vowel extension of Proto-Japonic *enu (“dog”).


蟻

Compound of 蟻 (ari, “ant”) + の (no, possessive particle) + 子 (ko, “child; small thing”).


大豆

大豆 (canonical)
daizu (romanization)
daidu (romanization)
だいづ (hiragana historical)

大豆蛋白

大豆蛋白 だいずたんぱく


蛇

蛇 (canonical)
蛇 (canonical)
hebi (romanization)

/pemi/ → /ɸemi/ → /ɸebi/ → /hebi/
Shift from older hemi (see below). The medial /m/ lost its nasal quality to become a plosive.
Appears in texts from the 1300s.

1999 March 6, “デビル・スネーク [Devil Snake]”, in Starter(スターター) Box(ボックス), Konami:

A single-eyed snake that breathes out frigid air to freeze its opponents.

目が一つしかないヘビ。冷気をはき出し、相手を氷づけにする。

Me ga hitotsu shikanai hebi. Reiki o hakidashi, aite o kōrizuke ni suru.

1999 May 27, “生(い)き血(ち)をすするもの [Lifeblood-Slurping One]”, in Vol.3, Konami:

A humanoid blood-sucking serpent who assaults passerby from the dark.

暗闇の中、道行く人々を襲う人型の吸血ヘビ。

Kurayami no naka, michiyuku hitobito o osou hitogata no kyūketsu hebi.

2000 May 1, “グラップラー [Grappler]”, in BOOSTER 7, Konami:

Watch out! This devious serpent will grapple you tight with its long and thick body!

ずるがしこいヘビ。太くて長い身体で締め付ける攻撃に注意！

Zurugashikoi hebi. Futokute nagai shintai de shimetsukeru kōgeki ni chūi!


蛇

⟨pe₂mi₁⟩ → */pəɨmʲi/ → /pemi/ → /ɸemi/ → /hemi/
From Old Japanese.
Derivation theories include:
* Possibly cognate with Korean 뱀 (baem, “snake”).
* Possibly related to, or influenced by, Old Japanese-derived verb 食む (hamu, “to bite”).
* Possibly also related to 波布 (habu, “a kind of poisonous pit viper native to Okinawa”).


蛇

ja-noun

蛇(くちなわ) • (kuchinawa) ^(←くちなは (kutinafa)?)

蛇 (canonical)
kuchinawa (romanization)
kutinafa (romanization)
くちなは (hiragana historical)

[kɯ̟̊t͡ɕina̠β̞a̠]

Extension of 朽ち縄 (kuchinawa, literally “rotten rope”), as such a rope resembles the appearance of a snake.
朽ち縄 (kuchinawa) itself is from くち (kuchi, 連(れん)用(よう)形(けい) (ren'yōkei, “stem or continuative form”) of the verb くちる (“to rot”).) + 縄(なわ) (nawa, “rope”)


蛇

Short for 蛇之助 (janosuke): a heavy drinker


蛇

Confusion of pronunciation with 陀(だ) (da) via phonetic radical 它.


象

ja-noun

象(ぞう) or 象(ゾウ) • (zō) ^(←ざう (zau)?) (counter 頭)

象 (canonical)
象 (canonical)
zō (romanization)
zau (romanization)
頭 (counter)
ざう (hiragana historical)

/zau/ → /zɔː/ → /zoː/
From Middle Chinese 象 (zjang^X, “elephant; image, resemblance”). Compare modern Cantonese reading zoeng⁶.
The goon reading, so likely the initial borrowing.


象

From Old Japanese. Cognate with 橒 (kisa, “wood grain”), from the way that ivory also has a grain.

象 [...] 岐佐 [...] 獣名、似水牛、大耳、長鼻、眼細、牙長者也

938, Minamoto no Shitagō, Wamyō Ruijushō, volume 7, page 52:

Elephant, … kisa a kind of beast, looks like water buffalo, having big ears, long nose, slender eyes and long teeth

それより西を行ケば、虎狼ひと山さワぐ所有り。キサ出デてその山をこしつ。

970–999, Utsubo Monogatari, page Toshikage:

When he went west from there, there was a place where tigers and monkeys clamoured on a mountain. Elephants had set out and crossed that mountain


人

From Late Middle Chinese 人 (MC nyin). The kan'on reading, so likely a later borrowing. Compare Mandarin 人 (rén).

Short for 人造 (jinzō): artificial, synthetic


亀

亀 (canonical)
亀 (canonical)
kame (romanization)

⟨kame₂⟩ → */kaməɨ/ → /kame/
From Old Japanese 龜 (kame₂). First attested in the Kojiki of 712 CE.


兎

兎 (canonical)
兎 (canonical)
usagi (romanization)
羽 (counter)

From Old Japanese, from Proto-Japonic *osanki, variant of *wosanki. Possibly cognate with Goguryeo *烏斯含 (*osegam).


匹

The original hichi reading evolved into hiki by association with 引き (hiki, “pulling”), from the way that an animal's leash is pulled.

犬が一匹います。

猫三匹を飼っています。

1984 February 20 [1983 June 15], Motoka Murakami, “気(き)になる新(しん)任(にん)先(せん)生(せい)の巻(まき) [A Little Worried about the New Teacher]”, in 六(ム)三(サ)四(シ)の剣(けん) [Musashi’s Sword], 4th edition, volume 10 (fiction), Tokyo: Shogakukan, →ISBN, page 147:

きっと十一の子よ‼十一とあの白い犬との赤ちゃんよ！

Kitto Toichi no ko yo‼ Toichi to ano shiroi inu to no aka-chan yo!

These must be Toichi’s puppies!! They’re Toichi and that white dog’s babies!

きっと十一の子よ‼十一とあの白い犬との赤ちゃんよ！

きっと十一の子よ‼十一とあの白い犬との赤ちゃんよ！

きっと十一の子よ‼十一とあの白い犬との赤ちゃんよ！

きっと十一の子よ‼十一とあの白い犬との赤ちゃんよ！

2010 March 17 [2010 July 5], Hajime Isayama, “その日(ひ) [That Day]”, in 進撃の巨人 [Attack on Titan], 4th edition, volume 1, Tokyo: Kodansha, →ISBN, pages 86–87:

I will wipe them out!! Every single one... of those pests... off the face of the earth!!

駆逐してやる‼この世から…一匹…残らず‼

Kuchikushite yaru‼ Kono yo kara… ippiki… nokorazu‼


卵

From 玉 (tama, “ball”) + 子 (ko, “child, small thing”). The ko reading for 子 changes to go as an instance of rendaku (連濁).

com

1999 September 23, “ウィング・エッグ・エルフ [Wing Egg Elf]”, in Vol.5, Konami:

An angel sheltered inside an eggshell. It fends off attacks with its massive wings.

たまごのカラに身を包む天使。大きな羽で攻撃を防ぐ。

Tamago no kara ni mi o tsutsumu tenshi. Ōki na hane de kōgeki o fusegu.

2000 July 13, “ドラゴン・エッガー [Dragon Egger]”, in Pharaoh’s Servant －ファラオのしもべ－, Konami:

A dragon who shelters in an eggshell. Never mistake him for a literal baby!

卵のカラをかぶっているドラゴン。子供と間違えると痛い目にあうぞ！

Tamago no kara o kabutte iru doragon. Kodomo to machigaeru to itaime ni au zo!

2003 July 17, “ジェノサイドキングサーモン [Genocide King Salmon]”, in 暗黒の侵略者 [Invader of Darkness], Konami:

A giant salmon worst feared in the Dark Sea. Its roe is best known as the ultimate delicacy of the Dark World.

暗黒海の主として恐れられている巨大なシャケ。その卵は暗黒界一の美味として知られている。

Ankokukai no nushi to shite osorerarete iru kyodai na shake. Sono tamago wa Ankokukaīchi no bimi to shiteshirarete iru.


塒

Compound of 寝(ね) (ne) + 座(くら) (kura). The kura changes to gura as an instance of rendaku (連濁).


嘴

Daijisen#Online_search_engines
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
ja:くちばし

Originally from 口(くち) (kuchi, “mouth”) + 端(はし) (hashi, “tip; edge”). The hashi changes to bashi as an instance of rendaku (連濁).
First attested around 850 CE.
The kanji is composed of 口(くち) (kuchi) and 觜(はし) (hashi, “beak; bill”). See also Etymology 2.

ja-com

1999 March 1, “スピック [Spick]”, in BOOSTER 1, Konami:

It frightens faint-hearted opponents with its blaring wails and massive bill.

くちばしがとても大きく、大声で鳴き気の弱い相手を驚かせる。

Kuchibashi ga totemo ōkiku, ōgoe de naki kinoyowai aite o odorokaseru.

1999 March 1, “ディッグ・ビーク [Dig Beak]”, in BOOSTER 1, Konami:

It attacks with its beak as its long body coils like a snake.

ヘビのように長い体をまるめ、回転しながらくちばしで攻撃。

Hebi no yō ni nagai karada o marume, kaiten shi nagara kuchibashi de kōgeki.

1999 October 17, “くちばしヘビ [Beaked Snake]”, in BOOSTER 5, Konami:

It attacks by pecking at its opponent with its huge beak while constricting them with its long body.

相手を長い体で締め上げ、大きなくちばしでつついて攻撃。

Aite o nagai karada de shimeage, ōkina kuchibashi de tsutsuite kōgeki.


嘴

Cognate with 端(はし) (hashi, “tip; edge”).


尺

尺 (canonical)
尺 (canonical)
shaku (romanization)
seki (romanization)

Xacu. l, xacumuxi. シャク. または, しゃくむし (尺. または, 尺虫) 歩くときに身を縮めたりしながら進む一種の小虫. Xacude taiuo tçuru. (尺で鯛を釣る) 諺. この小虫で鯛を釣って取る人のように, 小さなもので大きなものを手に入れる.

1603, Vocabvlario da Lingoa de Iapam (Nippo Jisho) [Vocabulary of the Language of Japan] (in Portuguese), Nagasaki, page 741:

Short for 尺障泥 (shaku aori, “geometer moth, Geometra papilionaria”).


尾

尾 (canonical)
o (romanization)
wo (romanization)
を (hiragana historical)

/wo/ → /o/
From Old Japanese 尾 (wo), from Proto-Japonic *bo.
First attested in the Kojiki of 712 CE in the senses “tail” and “foot of a mountain”.


柃

柃 (canonical)
柃 (canonical)
hisakaki (romanization)


朮

ja-noun

朮(おけら) or 朮(オケラ) • (okera) ^(←をけら (wokera)?)

朮 (canonical)
朮 (canonical)
okera (romanization)
wokera (romanization)
をけら (hiragana historical)


柾

柾 (canonical)
柾 (canonical)
masaki (romanization)


杉

杉 (canonical)
杉 (canonical)
sugi (romanization)

→ English: sugi

From Old Japanese 杉 (sugi₂), which Miyake (1997) (apud Schuessler, 2007) associates with Old Chinese 松 (OC *sɢloŋ). Ultimately comes from reconstructed Proto-Japonic *sunkOi.
First attested in the Kojiki of 712 CE.

Cryptomeria japonica
Cryptomeria japonica#Translingual


杓

杓 (canonical)
杓 (canonical)
shaku (romanization)

Anthriscus sylvestris
Anthriscus sylvestris#Translingual


梻

梻 (canonical)
梻 (canonical)
shikimi (romanization)

Illicium anisatum
Illicium anisatum#Translingual

Alternative spelling of 樒 (shikimi, “Japanese star anise (Illicium anisatum)”)


栂

栂 (canonical)
栂 (canonical)
tsuga (romanization)

⟨tuɡa⟩ → /t͡suɡa/
From Old Japanese. Found in the Man'yōshū, completed some time after 759 CE.
Appears to be an alternative phonetic realization of toga below.

southern Japanese hemlock, Tsuga sieboldii


栂

⟨to₁ɡa⟩ → /toɡa/
: Alternative reconstruction:
⟨to₁ɡa⟩ → */twoɡa/ → /toɡa/
From Old Japanese. Found in the Man'yōshū, completed some time after 759 CE.
Appears to be an alternative phonetic realization of tsuga above.


栲

栲 (canonical)
tae (romanization)
tafe (romanization)
たへ (hiragana historical)

/tape₂/ → /tape/ → /tafe/ → /tawe/ → /tae/
From Old Japanese.

(archaic) cloth, especially, from the fibers of the 梶の木 (kajinoki, “paper mulberry”) tree


栲

(archaic, possibly obsolete) old name for 楮 (kōzo, “hybrid mulberry”, used to make Japanese paper)

(archaic, possibly obsolete) old name for 梶の木 (kajinoki, “paper mulberry”)


梛

梛 (canonical)
梛 (canonical)
nagi (romanization)


棈

棈 (canonical)
棈 (canonical)
abemaki (romanization)


柊

Osmanthus heterophyllus
Osmanthus heterophyllus#Translingual

holly osmanthus (Osmanthus heterophyllus)


柊

柊(ひいらぎ) or 柊(ヒイラギ) • (hīragi) ^(←ひひらぎ (fifiragi) or ヒヒラギ (fifiragi)?)

柊 (canonical)
柊 (canonical)
hīragi (romanization)
fifiragi (romanization)
ひひらぎ (hiragana historical)
ヒヒラギ (hiragana historical)

[Alt: Osmanthus heterophyllus]
⟨pi₁pi₁ra ki₂⟩ → */pʲipʲiraɡʷi/ → /fifiraɡi/ → /hiwiraɡi/ → /hiːraɡi/
From Old Japanese, first attested in the Kojiki (712 CE).
Appears to derive as the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “continuative or stem form”) of now-obsolete verb 疼ぐ (hīragu, “to hurt with a stinging pain”), in reference to the sharp thorns on the leaves.

疼木: Osmanthus heterophyllus, a species of flowering plants known as the holly olive, holly osmanthus, or false holly


柊

柊 (canonical)
Hīragi (romanization)
Fifiragi (romanization)
ひひらぎ (hiragana historical)


柊

ja-pos

柊(しゅう) • (Shū)

/t͡ɕɨu/ → /ɕʲuː/ → /ɕuː/
From Middle Chinese 柊 (MC tsyuwng).


柏

Torreya nucifera
Torreya nucifera#Translingual

(rare) Japanese nutmeg yew, kaya, Torreya nucifera


柏

柏 (canonical)
柏 (canonical)
kashiwa (romanization)


柏

Kashiwa (a city in Chiba Prefecture, Japan)


梣

梣 (canonical)
梣 (canonical)
toneriko (romanization)

Corruption of 戸(と)に塗(ぬ)る木(き) (to-ni-nuru-ki).


楢

楢 (canonical)
楢 (canonical)
nara (romanization)


枝

枝 (canonical)
eda (romanization)
えだ (hiragana historical)

Inherited from earlier yeda, from Old Japanese, from Proto-Japonic *yonta. Cognate with Kunigami 枝 (yudā), Miyako 枝 (yuda), Okinawan 枝 (yida), 枝 (yuda), Yaeyama 枝 (yuda), Yonaguni 枝 (duda). The vowel change is irregular.


楸

楸 (canonical)
楸 (canonical)
kisasage (romanization)


柳

柳 (canonical)
Ryū (romanization)
Riu (romanization)
りう (hiragana historical)

(Chinese astronomy) the Willow as one of the twenty-eight mansions


椹

ja-noun

椹(さわら) or 椹(サワラ) • (sawara) ^(←さはら (safara)?)

椹 (canonical)
椹 (canonical)
sawara (romanization)
safara (romanization)
さはら (hiragana historical)


槻

Zelkova serrata
Zelkova serrata#Translingual


槻

(archaic) Synonym of 欅 (keyaki, “zelkova, Zelkova serrata”)


榧

榧 (canonical)
榧 (canonical)
kaya (romanization)


榊

The initial saka is cognate with verb 栄える (sakaeru, “to prosper, thrive”), while the final ki is definitely 木 (ki, “tree”).


朴

朴 (canonical)
hō (romanization)
fofo (romanization)
ほほ (hiragana historical)


朴

朴 (canonical)
朴 (canonical)
enoki (romanization)


榛

(archaic) Old name for Japanese alder (Alnus japonica)


榎

From Old Japanese. Found in the Man'yōshū, completed some time after 759 CE.
There are various theories regarding the ultimate derivation of this e. Some of these include:
* From 枝 (e, eda, “branch”), from the many branches
* From 餌 (e, esa, “food for animals”), from the multitude of berries eaten by birds
* From 柄 (e, “handle”), from the way the wood was used for tool handles

Celtis sinensis, the Chinese hackberry tree


榎

榎 (canonical)
榎 (canonical)
enoki (romanization)

Compound of 榎 (e, “Chinese hackberry”) + の (no, possessive particle) + 木 (ki, “tree”). Compare the similar formation of various other tree names, such as 楠 (kusu, “camphor; camphor tree”) and 楠 (kusunoki, “camphor tree”).


槐

槐 (canonical)
槐 (canonical)
enju (romanization)

Styphnolobium japonicum
Styphnolobium japonicum#Translingual


桐

桐 (canonical)
桐 (canonical)
kiri (romanization)

From Old Japanese. The tree may have been imported from China prior to the Nara period.
The term might be from 切り (kiri, “cutting”), from the way that the tree is quick to send out shoots after being cut.
Some sources also speculate that this might be from some term 木理 (*kiri, “wood grain”) in reference to the desirable grain of this wood. However, 木理 is only attested with the reading mokuri, not kiri; also, the term is not attested until the 1830s, before which the Japanese terms for wood grain were 木目 (mokume, from the mid-1500s) or 木目 (kime, from the 1200s).

from the wood of the paulownia used as the soundboard

from the markings of paulownia crests on the coins

(colloquial) money, especially gold coins such as the 大判 (ōban) and the 小判 (koban)


櫁

櫁 (canonical)
櫁 (canonical)
shikimi (romanization)

Alternative spelling of 樒 (shikimi, “Japanese star anise, Illicium anisatum”)


梓

ja-noun

梓(あずさ) or 梓(アズサ) • (azusa) ^(←あづさ (adusa) or アヅサ (adusa)?)

梓 (canonical)
梓 (canonical)
azusa (romanization)
adusa (romanization)
あづさ (hiragana historical)
アヅサ (hiragana historical)

/adusa/ → /ad͡zusa/ → /azusa/
From Old Japanese.

Japanese cherry birch
Japanese cherry birch

Betula grossa
Betula grossa#Translingual

Synonym of 夜糞峰榛 (yoguso minebari): the Japanese cherry birch, Betula grossa

夜糞峰榛

Short for 梓弓 (azusa yumi): a bow made from the wood of the Japanese cherry birch; a small musical bow used to summon spirits

梓弓

Short for 梓巫女 (azusa miko): a 巫女 (miko, “unmarried female medium”) who summons spirits by sounding the string of an azusa yumi (short musical bow)


梓

梓 (canonical)
Azusa (romanization)
Adusa (romanization)
あづさ (hiragana historical)


李

李 (canonical)
李 (canonical)
sumomo (romanization)

Compound of 酸 (su, “vinegar; sour”) + 桃 (momo, “peach”).


李

李 (canonical)
李 (canonical)
Ri (romanization)
李 (canonical)
李 (canonical)
Rī (romanization)
李 (canonical)
李 (canonical)
I (romanization)

Japanese reading of the South Korean surname


樫

樫 (canonical)
樫 (canonical)
kashi (romanization)

From Old Japanese. First attested in the Kojiki of 712 CE.
Probably related to Old Japanese かたし (katasi), modern 堅(かた)い (katai, “firm; resolute”), ultimately from Proto-Japonic *kata (“hard”).
Korean 가시나무 (gasinamu), which is a near-perfect match phonologically and semantically, is probably an ancient loan from a Japonic language.


樒

樒 (canonical)
樒 (canonical)
shikimi (romanization)

Japanese star anise (Illicium anisatum), a highly toxic tree whose branches are placed on Buddhist graves


椎

椎 (canonical)
椎 (canonical)
shī (romanization)
sifi (romanization)
しひ (hiragana historical)

chinquapin, a tree of the genus Castanopsis


椿

⟨tubaki₁⟩ → */tubakʲi/ → /t͡subaki/
From Old Japanese.


欅

欅 (canonical)
欅 (canonical)
keyaki (romanization)


樅

樅 (canonical)
樅 (canonical)
momi (romanization)


桂

桂江: a river in the Chūgoku region of Japan

a branch from the legendary tree that grows on the moon

桂樹: common name for various trees in family Lauraceae

Synonym of 浜枇杷

a type of tree in the genus Litsea, related to the laurel

a type of mochi confection coated in cinnamon powder

common name for various other trees in family Lauraceae


栗

栗 (canonical)
栗 (canonical)
kuri (romanization)


棗

棗 (canonical)
棗 (canonical)
natsume (romanization)

From Old Japanese. Originally a compound of 夏 (natsu, “summer”) + 芽 (me, “bud, sprout”).

a small tea caddy used in the tea ceremony


松

松 (canonical)
matsu (romanization)
matu (romanization)
まつ (hiragana historical)

Kojiki
Kyūjitai
Man'yōshū
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
Shinjitai
Tōkyō
Ōsaka

From Old Japanese. Attested in the Kojiki of 712 and the Man'yōshū of 759. In turn, from Proto-Japonic *matu.
Various theories exist regarding its ultimate origin:
* Might be a shift from 保つ (tamotsu, “to hold”). However, the accent of 保つ (tamotsu) in the Heian period is HHL, while 松 (matsu) is LH. It can be better derived from 持つ (motsu, “to hold, to carry”), which has LF accent in the Heian period.
* Might be from 待つ (matsu, “to wait”), either from the way that a pine tree must wait for leaves to fall to grow new ones, or from the way that it lasts ten thousand years and preserves its color. The accent of 待つ (matsu) is LF.
* Possibly derived from 全く (mataku, “entirely”), from 全い (matai, “complete”), because it spends its time in the snow for winter. However, the classical term 全し (matasi) is HHF in the Heian period.
* From 睫毛 (matsuge, “eyelashes”), since their leaves represent such. However, it requires deletion of the -ge, and matsuge is certainly from 目 (ma-, “eye”).
* From 真常木 (matonoki, “true eternal tree”), as the pine tree is an evergreen tree.
* From a place name 松のむらたち (MATSU no muratachi), as opposed to muratatsu.
* From 芽厚 (meatsu, literally “bud (that feels) hot”).
* From 纏わる (matsuwaru, “get wrapped around”), as the leaves are around the trunk.
* From 真 (ma-, “true”) + つ (tsu, abbreviation of 約まる (tsuzumaru, “to shrink”)).
* From 間千 (machi, literally “space (of) thousands”).
* A shift from 股 (mata, “crouch”), as the pine tree leaves split into two.


梟

ja-noun

梟(ふくろう) or 梟(ふくろ) • (fukurō or fukuro) ^(←ふくろふ (fukurofu)?)

梟 (canonical)
梟 (canonical)
fukurō (romanization)
fukuro (romanization)
fukurofu (romanization)
ふくろふ (hiragana historical)

[ɸɯ̟̊kɯ̟ɾo̞ː]

ja:フクロウ ja:フクロウ科


樺

樺 (canonical)
樺 (canonical)
kaba (romanization)

Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
Wamyō Ruijushō
ja:カバノキ属

A shift from kaniwa below.
First appears in the Wamyō Ruijushō of 934 CE.


樺

樺 (canonical)
樺 (canonical)
kanba (romanization)


樺

樺 (canonical)
kaniwa (romanization)
kanifa (romanization)
かには (hiragana historical)

John Batchelor (missionary)
Kōjien
Man'yōshū
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
Sakhalin Ainu language
Shinmura Izuru
Wamyō Ruijushō

⟨kanipa⟩ → /kaniɸa/ → /kaniwa/
From Old Japanese 樺 (kanipa, “sakura, sakura bark”), from Ainu カリンパ (karinpa, “sakura, sakura bark”).
Found in the Man'yōshū (book 6), completed some time after 759 CE, in sense 1. Sense 2 appears in the Wamyō Ruijushō of 934 CE.
Compare Sakhalin Ainu カリムバニ (karimba-ni, “cherry tree; Prunus pseudocerasus”) and カリムバタツ (karimba-tat, “Betula Maximowicziana”).

der

(obsolete) Japanese bird cherry (Prunus grayana) or its bark


桑

ja-noun

桑(くわ) or 桑(クワ) • (kuwa) ^(←くは (kufa) or クハ (kufa)?)

桑 (canonical)
桑 (canonical)
kuwa (romanization)
kufa (romanization)
くは (hiragana historical)
クハ (hiragana historical)

/kupa/ → /kuɸa/ → /kuwa/
From Old Japanese. First attested in the Nihon Shoki of 720 CE. From Proto-Japonic *kupa.
Ultimate derivation unclear. Definitely not related to Korean 뽕 (ppong, “mulberry tree”) or 오디 (odi, “mulberry fruit”), nor to Ainu テㇱマニ (tesmani, “mulberry tree”) or ツレㇷ゚ニ (turepni, “mulberry tree”).
Some theories suggest this might have originally been a compound. Possible derivations may include:
* A shift from 蚕葉 (kopa, “silkworm + leaf”)
* A shift from 胡葉 (kopa, “non-Chinese people to the west of China + leaf”), possibly referencing the origin of some mulberry species in central Asia
* A contraction of 食ふ葉 (kupu pa, “eat + leaf”), where kupu is the ancient reading of modern 食う (kuu)


桑

桑 (canonical)
sō (romanization)
sau (romanization)
さう (hiragana historical)

(US) Short for 桑港 (“San Francisco (a city in California, United States)”).


梨

Fourth grade kyōiku kanji (romanization)


梨

梨 (canonical)
梨 (canonical)
nashi (romanization)

Pyrus pyrifolia
Yamanashi prefecture
ja:ナシ

From Old Japanese, attested already in the Man'yōshū. Further derivation unclear.

align

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梨子地, 梨地

nashiji, a lacquer technique using gold or silver powder or flakes

Pyrus pyrifolia
Pyrus pyrifolia#Translingual

more specifically, a Japanese pear or Asian pear (Pyrus pyrifolia)


梨

From Middle Chinese 梨 (MC lij). Compare modern Mandarin 梨 (lí).

梨園

the theatrical world, the world of the theater


桃

桃 (canonical)
桃 (canonical)
momo (romanization)

desc

>? Ainu: モマ (moma, “Japanese peach, Japanese apricot”)

Heian period
Nara period
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
Nihon Shoki
Yayoi period

From Old Japanese, from Proto-Japonic *momo. Mentioned in the Nihon Shoki of 720.
Brought to Japan in antiquity, with pits found in prehistoric sites from the Yayoi period, 300 BCE - 300 CE. Mentioned as a food in documents from the Nara and Heian periods.
Ultimate derivation unknown. Theories include the following.
* Possibly derived originally from a reduplication of 実 (Old Japanese mu, modern Japanese mi, “fruit”), from the way that peaches often grow in clusters. However, the vowel shift seems unlikely given regular Japanese phonetic shifts. In addition, most reduplicated terms in Japanese have the 頭高型 (atamadaka-gata) pitch accent pattern, starting high and falling, which differs from the 平板型 (heiban-gata) pitch accent pattern of this term.
* Possibly cognate with Old Japanese 百 (momo, “hundred; lots”). However, this also has the 頭高型 (atamadaka-gata) pitch accent pattern.
* Possibly a reduplication of 毛 (mo, “hair”), from the way that peaches are hairy. The term is spelled as 毛毛 in some ancient documents. However, 毛 was commonly used as man'yōgana for its phonetic value, in which cases its original Chinese meaning of hair is usually ignored.
None of the above possibilities seems very compelling. Given the archaeological evidence, this term probably originated before the Japanese ancestor population migrated to the Japanese archipelago.
Possibly related to 梅 (ancient mume, modern ume, “Japanese apricot, Japanese plum”).

桃尻: → from the way that the end of a peach is often pointy

and thus difficult to place stably: somebody who is bad at horse-riding

桃割れ: → a hairstyle of Meiji and Taisho era

featuring a bun resembling a halved peach

桃栗三年柿八年: “peach and chestnut take three years [to bear fruit]

persimmons take eight” → it often takes time to bear the fruit of one's actions


柿

柿 (canonical)
柿 (canonical)
kaki (romanization)

→ Arabic: كَاكِي (kākī)

→ Catalan: caqui

→ English: kaki (“persimmon”)

→ German: Kaki

→ Indonesian: kaki (“persimmon”)

→ Italian: cachi (“persimmon”)

→ Portuguese: caqui (“persimmon”)

Early Modern Japanese
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten

From Old Japanese. First cited to a text from 770 CE.
Further derivation uncertain. Possibilities include:
: /kakayaki/ → */kakyaki/ → */kakaki/ → */kakki/ → /kaki/
:* From 輝き (kakayaki), the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “stem or continuative form”) of Early Modern Japanese verb 輝く (kakayaku, “to shine dazzingly”, obsolete), modern kagayaku.
: /kataki/ → /kaki/
:* From 硬き (kataki), the classical 連体形 (rentaikei, “attributive form”) of modern 硬い (katai, “hard (not soft)”), from the hardness of the unripened fruit.
: /akaki/ → /kaki/
:* From 赤き (akaki), the classical 連体形 (rentaikei, “attributive form”) of modern 赤い (akai, “red”), from the color of the ripened fruit.
:* From 赤黄 (akaki, “red-yellow”), from the color of the ripened fruit.
:* From 赤木 (akaki, “red tree”), from the color of the foliage in autumn.
While at least one reference considers the akaki derivation more likely, this kind of phonological shift, wherein the first vowel disappears, is not a common pattern in attested Japanese. That said, the kakayaki and kataki derivations are also problematic, considering the lack of any evidence for intermediary forms.

Short for 柿色 (kakiiro). a yellowish-red color, like the fruit of the Japanese persimmon


楓

Liquidambar formosana
Liquidambar formosana#Translingual

Liquidambar formosana, Chinese sweetgum tree, Formosan sweetgum tree


楓

楓 (canonical)
kaede (romanization)
kafede (romanization)
かへで (hiragana historical)

Daijirin
Edo Castle
Man'yōshū
Maple
ja:カエデ

/kaperu te/ → /kaperude/ → /kaferude/ → /kafede/ → /kaede/
From Old Japanese かへるて, as this word first appears in the Man'yōshū of 759 CE.
Originally a compound of 蛙 (kaeru, “frog”) + 手 (te, “hand”), with the te changing to de due to rendaku (連濁), and the ru dropping out over time. From the way the palmate leaves resemble a frog's foot.

楓棚

a type of shelf in a tokonoma or study, with four legs and eight shelves

a type of estrildid finch common in Africa and introduced to Japan in the 1960s

楓の間

the Maple Room, one of the shogun sitting room in Edo Castle

楓紅葉: maple leaves that have turned red in autumn

a style of layered clothing with light yellow-green on the outside and yellow


楓

楓 (canonical)
楓 (canonical)
fū (romanization)

Liquidambar formosana
New Book of Tang
ja:フウ

楓蚕: alternative for 天蚕蛾

Japanese silkworm moth, Antheraea yamamai

楓葉

maple leaves that have turned red in autumn

楓呉江に落つ: → being disappointed in the reality of something after having lofty ideas about it

a story in the New Book of Tang about an inspiring poem from an otherwise uninspiring poet

and the kumquat flowers open” → a metaphor for the turning of the seasons

the Formosan sweetgum tree, Liquidambar formosana

in certain kanji compounds, the maple tree


檜

檜 (canonical)
檜 (canonical)
hinoki (romanization)

→ English: hinoki

⇒ English: hinokitiol

Jōdai Tokushu Kanazukai
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten

Originally a compound of 檜 (hi, “Japanese cypress”, see below) + の (no, attributive particle) + 木 (ki, “tree”).
The wood and bark was commonly used as tinder, and the term was previously thought to be from 火 (hi, “fire”) + の (no, attributive particle) + 木 (ki, “tree”). However, later research into ancient kana usage in Old Japanese revealed that 檜 had a reading of ⟨pi₁⟩, while 火 was read as ⟨pi₂⟩, ruling out this derivation.

com

Chamaecyparis obtusa
Chamaecyparis obtusa#Translingual


檜

Daijisen#Online_search_engines
Kojiki
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten

⟨pi₁⟩ → */pʲi/ → /ɸi/ → /hi/
From Old Japanese 檜 (pi₁).
First appears in the Kojiki of 712 CE.

(archaic, or in compounds) Japanese cypress (Chamaecyparis obtusa)


橘

橘 (canonical)
橘 (canonical)
tachibana (romanization)

Emperor Suinin
Kojiki
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
Nihon Shoki
Tajimamori
ja:垂仁天皇
ja:田道間守

From Old Japanese 橘 (tatibana). First cited in the Kojiki of 712.
According to the Nihon Shoki in a section describing the 90th year of the reign of the legendary 垂仁天皇 (Suinin Tennō, “Emperor Suinin”, traditionally regarded as living from 69 BCE – 70 CE and reigning from 29 BCE – 70 CE), a legendary figure named 田道間守 (Tajimamori) was tasked with bringing back from the heavens a 非時香菓 (tokijiku no kagu no konomi, literally, “timeless fragrant tree-fruit”; the same incident is also included in the Kojiki). This is often interpreted to be a reference to tachibana, but the text itself is not specific.
A surface analysis suggests that this is a compound of 立ち (tachi, “standing”, from verb 立つ (tatsu, “to stand”)) + 花 (hana, “flower”).
Shortened to tachi for some compounds.

compound

from verb <i class="Jpan mention" lang="ja">立つ</i> (tatsu, “to stand”)

江南の橘江北の枳となる

Kōnan no tachibana Kōhoku no karatachi to naru

Citrus tachibana, a species of wild, green, inedible citrus fruit native to Japan

Synonym of 唐橘 (kara-tachibana): the trifoliate orange, Citrus trifoliata, syn. Poncirus trifoliata

唐橘

(archaic) generic name for citrus fruits that can be eaten raw


橘

源平藤橘

Genpeitōkitsu, the four major clans in the Nara period: Minamoto, Taira, Fujiwara and Tachibana

源平藤橘 げんぺいとうきつ


橙

橙 (canonical)
橙 (canonical)
daidai (romanization)

Thought to be derived from 代代 (daidai, “many generations”), from the way bitter orange fruits never fall down, even in winter, until picked.

Citrus × aurantium
Citrus × aurantium#Translingual

(by extension) Short for 橙色 (daidai-iro): the color orange


桜

桜 (canonical)
ō (romanization)
au (romanization)
あう (hiragana historical)

/au/ → /ɔː/ → /oː/
From Middle Chinese 櫻 (MC 'eang).

サクラメント サクラメント#Japanese

(US) Short for サクラメント／桜府 (Sakuramento, “Sacramento (a city in California, United States)”).


梅

梅 (canonical)
梅 (canonical)
ume (romanization)

English: ume

Daijisen
Heian period
Kyūjitai
Shinjitai
Tōkyō
ja:松村明
Ōsaka

⟨me₂⟩ → */mːəɨ/ → *⟨mume₂⟩ → ⟨ume₂⟩ → */uməɨ/ → /ume/
From Old Japanese.
Probably ultimately from Middle Chinese 梅 (MC mwoj), with the borrowed me reading gaining a pronounced kind of initial m- sound, perhaps realized as *mme. The phonetic spelling was often rendered as むめ (*mme, mume) from the Heian period, with *mme/mume and ume apparently existing in free variation. The reading eventually settled on うめ (ume). Compare the similar pattern of phonetic shift for 馬 (ma → *mma → muma → uma, “horse”), likely from Middle Chinese 馬 (MC maeX).


梅

→ Translingual: mume

Heian period
Kyūjitai
Shinjitai
Tōkyō
Ōsaka

⟨me₂⟩ → */mːəɨ/ → *⟨mume₂⟩ → /mume/
Possibly from Old Japanese.
This reading becomes common during the Heian period, later falling into disuse.
Superseded by the ume reading above.

(archaic, obsolete) the Japanese plum or apricot, Prunus mume


梅

From a later borrowing of Middle Chinese 梅 (MC mwoj).

(usually in Chinese contexts) the Japanese plum or apricot, Prunus mume


梅

Short for 梅雨 (baiu): East Asian rainy season


漆

⇒ English: urushiol

Appears to be derived from Old Japanese root uru, as in terms such as classical Japanese 潤う (urufu) → modern 潤う (uruou, “to be moist”), うるうる (uruuru, “wetly, moistly”, adverb). Probably from the way that a lacquered surface glistens as if wet.

lacquer tree (Toxicodendron vernicifluum)


柚

From Middle Chinese 柚 (MC yuwH). The goon pronunciation, so likely an earlier borrowing.
Found in the Wamyō Ruijushō:
:柚 爾雅集注云柚（音由又以臰反）一名樤（音條和名由）...
where 由 is the man'yōgana form of ゆ.

lang

柚　爾雅集注云柚（音由又以臰反）一名樤（音條和名由）...

柚 爾雅集注云柚（音由又以臰反）一名樤（音條和名由）...


柚

柚 (canonical)
yū (romanization)
iu (romanization)
いう (hiragana historical)

/iu/ → /juː/
Probably from Middle Chinese 柚 (MC yuwH). The kan'on pronunciation, so likely a later borrowing.
Found in the Wakan Sansai Zue.


獏

獏 (canonical)
獏 (canonical)
baku (romanization)


狆

Appeared from the Edo period.
A 国字 (kokuji, “Japanese-coined character”), invented independently of Chinese 狆 (zhòng, “Bouyei people”).

ja-etym-kokuji

name of an ethnic group had been living in Yunnan and Guizhou


狢

狢 (canonical)
狢 (canonical)
mujina (romanization)

Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
Nihon Shoki
Wakan Sansai Zue

From Old Japanese. First attested in the Nihon Shoki of 720 CE.

(mythology) a yōkai that shapeshifts and deceives humans


狢

From Old Japanese. First attested in the Nihon Shoki of 720 CE.
Possibly a shift from mujina above.


犀

犀 (canonical)
犀 (canonical)
sai (romanization)


木

⟨ki₂⟩ → */kɨ/ → /ki/
From Old Japanese 木 (ki₂), from Proto-Japonic *kəi. Cognate with Proto-Ryukyuan *ke. For the vowel alternation, see Wiktionary:About Proto-Japonic § Standalone forms and combining forms.
First attested in the Kojiki of 712 CE.

猿も木から落ちる

even monkeys fall from trees → nobody's perfect

(graph theory, computer science) a tree (data structure)


木

From Middle Chinese 木 (MC muwk). Compare modern Cantonese 木 (muk⁶).


木

From Middle Chinese 木 (MC muwk). Compare literary Min Nan 木 (bo̍k).


猪

ja-noun

猪(いのしし) or 猪(イノシシ) • (inoshishi) ^(←ゐのしし (winosisi) or ヰノシシ (winosisi)?)

猪 (canonical)
猪 (canonical)
inoshishi (romanization)
winosisi (romanization)
ゐのしし (hiragana historical)
ヰノシシ (hiragana historical)

Compound of 猪 (i, “pig, boar”, see below) + の (no, possessive particle) + 獣 (shishi, “beast”, archaic).


猪

ja-pos

猪(いのしし) • (Inoshishi) ^(←ゐのしし (Winosisi)?)

猪 (canonical)
Inoshishi (romanization)
Winosisi (romanization)
ゐのしし (hiragana historical)


猪

Kojiki
Kyūjitai
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
Shinjitai

From Old Japanese. First attested in the Kojiki of 712 CE. From Proto-Japonic *sisi. Cognate with 肉 (shishi, “meat of a beast”).


猿

猿 (canonical)
猿 (canonical)
saru (romanization)
匹 (counter)

→ Yami: sazo

John Batchelor (missionary)
Man'yōshū
Monkey
ja:サル

From Old Japanese. Appears in the Man'yōshū, completed some time after 759 CE.
Ultimate derivation possibly borrowed from Ainu サロ (saro, “monkey”, from サㇻ (sar, “a tail”) + オ (o, “to bear, to wear, to carry”)).
The kanji is from Chinese 猿 (yuán, “ape”). Compare Japanese 猪 (inoshishi, “boar”) from Chinese 猪 (zhū, “pig”) and Japanese 豚 (buta, “pig”) from Chinese 豚 (tún, “suckling pig”).

bor

1988 July 30 [1984 July 25], Fujiko F. Fujio, “世(せ)界(かい)名(めい)作(さく)童(どう)話(わ)第(だい)３(さん)巻(かん) うらしま太(た)郎(ろう) [World’s Renowned Fairy Tales Book 3: Urashima Tarō]”, in ポストの中の明日 [Post-Mid-Tomorrow] (藤子不二雄少年SF短編集; 2), 10th edition, volume 2 (fiction), Tokyo: Shogakukan, →ISBN, page 117:

Meanwhile, Earth became the Planet of the Apes.

地球は、サルのわく星になっていましたとさ。

Chikyū wa, saru no wakusei ni natte imashita to sa.


狸

狸 (canonical)
狸 (canonical)
tanuki (romanization)

安んぞ狐狸を問わん

sairō michi ni atareri, izukunzo kori o towan

→ English: tanuki, tanooki

According to one theory, derived from 手貫 (tanuki, “arm glove, gauntlet”), which raccoon dog hide was sometimes used for.

やいやい、其処な狸め

1717, Kokusen'ya gonichi gassen (jōruri), volume 3

(figurative) a person who pretends to be good but in fact is cunning (compare English sly fox)

Short for 狸饂飩 (tanuki-udon) and 狸蕎麦 (tanuki-soba): styles of various noodle dishes

狸饂飩

狸を決め込む ― tanuki o kimekomu ― pretend to be a raccoon dog → feign sleep

(rare) Short for 狸寝入り (tanuki neiri): pretending to be asleep

(rare, obsolete) Short for 狸汁 (tanuki-jiru): a soup made from tanuki meat mixed with daikon, burdock root, etc.


狸

Cognate with tanuki above.
Considered to be a result of irregular apophony in the medieval times.

(dated, dialectal, Kansai) Short for 狸饂飩 (tanoki-udon) and 狸蕎麦 (tanoki-soba): styles of various noodle dishes


狼

狼毒

Japanese wolfsbane, a poisonous perennial of the family Thymelaeaceae


狼

ja-noun

狼(おおかみ) or 狼(オオカミ) • (ōkami) ^(←おほかみ (ofokami)?) (counter 匹)

狼 (canonical)
狼 (canonical)
ōkami (romanization)
ofokami (romanization)
匹 (counter)
おほかみ (hiragana historical)

Daijisen#Online_search_engines
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
Nihon Shoki

/opo kami₂/ → /opokami/ → /ofokami/ → /owokami/ → /oːkami/
From Old Japanese. Originally a compound of 大 (opo, “great”) + 神 (kami, “god, spirit”).
First attested in the Nihon Shoki of 720 CE.

af

狐狼 上扈反, 倭言岐都禰, 又狐諼獸鬼所乘有三徳, 狐疑不定也, 狼音良, 訓, 似犬也, 倭言大神也

犲狼 [...] 説文云、狼、音郎、於保加美、和名二字、本草和名、犲皮、和名於保加美、雄略紀、豺狼二字同訓、貝原氏曰、狼、於保加美 [...]

938, Minamoto no Shitagō, Wamyō Ruijushō, volume 7, page 56:

犲狼: 兼名苑云狼一名犲音於説文云狼音即和名於保加美似犬而銃頭白頬者也爾雅注云獥音叫狼子也

c. 1177-1188: Iroha Jiruishō
狼（オホカミ）

(please add an English translation of this quotation)

狼（ヲヽカミ）

2006 May 20, Michiyo Akaishi, “最(さい)終(しゅう)話(わ) [Final Chapter]”, in AMAKUSA(アマクサ)1637 [Amakusa 1637], volume 12 (fiction), Tokyo: Shogakukan, →ISBN, page 179:

Wolves are all alive and well. Why are you acting so strange today, chief?

狼いっぱいいますよー どうしたんです 会長 今日は

Ōkami ippai imasu yō Dō shitan desu kaichō kyō wa

狼いっぱいいますよー どうしたんです 会長 今日は

Short for 日本狼 (Nihon-ōkami, “Japanese wolf”).


狼

狼 (canonical)
ōkame (romanization)
ofokame (romanization)
おほかめ (hiragana historical)

Alteration from ōkami above. Appears in the Kamakura period.

1593: Esopono fabulas (Aesop's Fables), "Vôcameto, fitcujino tatoyeno coto" Aru cauabatani vôcamemo, fitcujimo mizzuuo nomuni, [...]

Vôcame. ヲゥカメ (狼) 狼.

1603, Vocabvlario da Lingoa de Iapam (Nippo Jisho) [Vocabulary of the Language of Japan] (in Portuguese), Nagasaki, page 697:

Lupus, i: lobo: yàmàinu. vel, vocame:

1632, Diego Collado, Dictionarium Sive Thesauri Linguae Iaponicae Compendium, page 75:


烏

From Middle Chinese 烏 (MC 'u).
The goon pronunciation, so likely the initial borrowing.

烏有 ― uyū ― (literally “not-have”) nonexistence; nothing

rhetorical question
rhetorical question#English

A Chinese interrogative for rhetorical questions.


熊

熊 (canonical)
熊 (canonical)
kuma (romanization)

From Old Japanese. First cited in the Kojiki of 712.
Further derivation is uncertain. Possibilities include:
* Might be cognate with Japanese 隈 (kuma, “inside corner; inner bend; hollow or hole in something”), perhaps from the way that bears often live in dens.
* Might also or separately be cognate with Middle Korean 곰〯 (kwǒm, “bear”), whose archaic form */koma/ is preserved as the first element of the toponym 고마〮ᄂᆞᄅᆞ (Kwòmánòlò, literally “Bear-ford”). Thus, a cognate of Korean 곰 (gom, “bear”) and Baekje 金馬 (*kəma/*kuma, “bear”).
* Might be an areal Wanderwort, borrowed from Old Chinese 熊 (OC *ɢʷlɯm) and ultimately deriving from Proto-Sino-Tibetan *d-wam. See also the etymology notes in the *d-wam entry.


狐

狐 (canonical)
狐 (canonical)
kitsune (romanization)

From Old Japanese. Appears in the Man'yōshū, completed some time after 759 CE.
There are various theories. The most likely is based on the root form kitsu, which may have originally been onomatopoeic for the sound of a fox's cry. The final ne syllable appeared for certain by the Heian period, but its meaning remains unclear.

1994 July 16, Isao Takahata, 平成狸合戦ぽんぽこ [Heisei Raccoon Dog War Ponpoko], spoken by Oroku (Nijiko Kiyokawa), Toho:

Those lesser kinds like chameleons can make use of “mimicry”, but beside us, only foxes and a few cats can master “metamorphism”!!

程度の低いものは「擬態」と呼ばれ、カメレオンなんぞにもできるが、「化け学」はオラたち以外では、キツネと一部のネコしか身につけておらん‼

Teido no hikui mono wa “gitai” to yobare, kamereon nanzo ni mo dekiru ga,“bakegaku” wa ora-tachi igai de wa, kitsune to ichibu no neko shika mi ni tsuketeoran‼

兎死すれば狐これを悲しむ

usagi shi sureba kitsune kore o kanashimu


牛

牛 (canonical)
牛 (canonical)
ushi (romanization)

From Old Japanese, from Proto-Japonic *usi.

1999 November 18, “牛(ぎゅう)魔(ま)人(じん) [Bull Jinn]”, in Vol.6, Konami:

A bovine jinn who resides in the woods. He’ll charge at you and stick you with his horns.

森に住む牛の魔人。ツノを突き出し突進して攻撃。

Mori ni sumu ushi no majin. Tsuno o tsukidashi tosshin shite kōgeki.

1999 December 1, “ミノタウルス [Minotaurus]”, in BOOSTER 6, Konami:

A bovine monster with tremendous power who chops up anyone in his way with one axe swing.

すごい力を持つウシの怪物。オノひと振りで何でもなぎ倒す。

Sugoi chikara o motsu ushi no kaibutsu. Ono hitofuri de nani demo nagitaosu.

cow, bull, ox, cattle, a domestic bovine


牛

牛 (canonical)
gyū (romanization)
giu (romanization)
ぎう (hiragana historical)

From Middle Chinese 牛 (ngjuw, “cow”). Compare Hokkien 牛 (giû / ngiû).


稗

稗 (canonical)
稗 (canonical)
hie (romanization)

Japanese barnyard millet (Echinochloa esculenta)

豆を植えて稗を得る

to do something expecting good results, instead getting bad results


笹

笹 (canonical)
笹 (canonical)
sasa (romanization)

Translingual: Sasa


瓜

瓜 (canonical)
瓜 (canonical)
uri (romanization)

From Old Japanese, from Proto-Japonic *ori. Found in the Man'yōshū, compiled some time after 759 CE.
Possibly derived as the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “continuative or stem form”) of classical verb 熟る (uru), modern form 熟れる (ureru, “to ripen”).
Possibly cognate with Korean 오이 (oi, “cucumber”); compare other terms in the Japonic family, such as Kikai 瓜 (ui) and Yoron 瓜 (ui).

or the apple does not fall far from the tree

瓜を二つに割らずそのまま: → like two peas in a pod

like a gourd that hasn't even been split in two


糯

grains which are highly sticky when cooked due to containing little or no amylose


綿

From Old Japanese, from Proto-Japonic *wata. Cognate with Okinawan 綿 (wata).
Originally referred to any batting or stuffing, which was generally unspun silk. The meaning shifted after the spread of cotton in the Muromachi period.

綿のように疲れた

to be as tired as cotton → to be exhausted

(figurative) the state of being exhausted or extremely tired (likely from the hard work required to pick cotton)


粟

粟 (canonical)
粟 (canonical)
awa (romanization)

From Old Japanese. First attested in the Kojiki of 712 CE. From Proto-Japonic *apa (“millet”). Cognate with Okinawan 粟 (ā), Miyako 粟 (ā), and Yaeyama 粟 (ā).


竹

竹 (canonical)
竹 (canonical)
take (romanization)

Bamboo-copter
Early Middle Japanese
Early Modern Japanese
Late Middle Japanese
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten

From Old Japanese, from Proto-Japonic *takai.
Theories on derivation include:
* From 長生 (takeou) or 高生 (takahae), in reference to the speed at which bamboo grows.
* Cognate with 高 (taka), 長 (take), 丈 (take) "height".
* From 高景 (takakake) or つらこえ (tsurakoe).
* From ta meaning "tall" (高い (takai)) + ke, ancient form of 木 (ki, “tree”).
* A contraction of 痛快茎延へ (itakukihae), referring to the speed at which bamboo grows.
* Ta is from Korean 대 (dae, “bamboo”) (see also 대나무 (daenamu, “bamboo”, literally “bamboo tree”)), while ke is an ancient form of 木 (ki).

『竹取物語』

a 家紋 (kamon, “family crest”) consisting of a bird on a bamboo tree and various bamboo rings

(slang) a maidservant (due to being used as the stock name for a maidservant in novels of the early modern era)


羆

羆 (canonical)
羆 (canonical)
higuma (romanization)

Shinsen Jikyō
Taishō era
Wamyō Ruijushō
ja:ヒグマ

com-ja

四(し) (shi, “four”) + 熊(くま) (kuma, “bear”)

三毛別羆事件


紫

紫 (canonical)
紫 (canonical)
murasaki (romanization)

From Old Japanese.
Possibly a compound of 群 (mura, “gathering, group”) + 咲き (saki, “blooming”, the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “stem or continuative form”) of verb 咲く (saku), “to bloom”).

茜さす

akane sasu, pillow word that can be an allusion to murasaki

Short for 紫色 (murasaki-iro): the color purple

(archaic women's speech) Synonym of 鰯 (iwashi): a sardine, especially the Japanese pilchard, Sardinops sagax


紫

(colloquial) Short for 紫式部 (Murasaki Shikibu): Heian-period novelist and lady-in-waiting


紫

From 縁 (yukari, “affinity, connection”).


芹

芹 (canonical)
芹 (canonical)
seri (romanization)


苣

苣 (canonical)
苣 (canonical)
chisha (romanization)
ちさ (alternative hiragana)
チサ (katakana)
chisa (Rōmaji)


荻

Miscanthus sacchariflorus
Miscanthus sacchariflorus#Translingual

Amur silver-grass (Miscanthus sacchariflorus)


荻

荻 (canonical)
荻 (canonical)
ogi (romanization)
wogi (romanization)
をぎ (hiragana historical)

From Old Japanese. Found in the Man'yōshū, completed some time after 759 CE.
Ultimate derivation uncertain. One theory suggests that it might be the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “continuative or stem form”) of classical verb 招く (ancient reading woku, modern rendering oku, “to invite, to beckon someone closer”, also found in some texts with the ancient reading wogu), from the way the grass waves in the wind.


莧

莧 (canonical)
莧 (canonical)
hiyu (romanization)

Amaranthus tricolor
Amaranthus tricolor#Translingual

Amaranthus tricolor var. mangostanus#Translingual

Amaranthus tricolor (Joseph's coat); tampala, specifically Amaranthus tricolor var. mangostanus


苔

Synonym of 猿麻桛 (saruogase, “beard moss, Usena”)


菘

菘 (canonical)
suzuna (romanization)
すずな (hiragana historical)

Compound of 鈴 (suzu, “bell”) + 菜 (na, “greens”).


茅

茅 (canonical)
茅 (canonical)
chigaya (romanization)

Imperata cylindrica
Imperata cylindrica#Translingual


苺

苺 (canonical)
苺 (canonical)
ichigo (romanization)

Nihon Shoki
Shinsen Jikyō
Wamyō Ruijushō

⟨i ti pi₁ko₁⟩ → /itibʲikʷo/ → */itimiko/ → */itĩɡo/ → /it͡siɡo/ → /it͡ɕiɡo/
First attested in the Wamyō Ruijushō (938 CE).
Shift from Old Japanese 蓬蔂 (itibiko → ichibiko), attested earlier in the Nihon Shoki (720 CE) and the Shinsen Jikyō (c. 900 CE), itself a compound of 斎 (i-, prefix expressing sacredness) + 血 (chi, “blood”) + 彦 (hiko, “boy, prince”).

a strawberry (plant of genus Fragaria, or its fruit)


菫

菫 (canonical)
菫 (canonical)
sumire (romanization)

ja:スミレ ja:スミレ属 ja:スミレ科

三色菫

三色菫 サンショクスミレ

菫菜 本草云、菫菜俗謂之菫葵、上音謹、須美禮

938, Minamoto no Shitagō, Wamyō Ruijushō, volume 9, page 48:

Violet- The Materia medicia calls them 'violet greens', people commonly call them 'violet mallows', the above sound is jin, Japanese name sumire

菫菜(スミレ)

a viola (any of several flowering plants of the genus Viola)


蓍

(archaic) Short for 蓍萩 (medohagi, “Lespedeza juncea”).

(archaic) Short for 蓍 (medoki, “divination sticks”).


菱

菱 (canonical)
菱 (canonical)
hishi (romanization)


萩

萩 (canonical)
萩 (canonical)
hagi (romanization)

bush clover, general term for plants of genus Lespedeza. Culturally important as one of the seven flowers of autumn.


蓴

蓴 (canonical)
nunawa (romanization)
nunafa (romanization)
ぬなは (hiragana historical)

[nɯ̟na̠β̞a̠]

Synonym of 蓴菜 (junsai, “water shield, Brasenia schreberi”)


莪

莪 (canonical)
tsunoyomogi (romanization)


苗

苗 (canonical)
nae (romanization)
nafe (romanization)
なへ (hiragana historical)

From Old Japanese, from Proto-Japonic *napay.
Apophonic form of 苗(なわ) (nawa, “seedling”, bound form, only used in compounds), similar to nouns such as 神 (kami, kan-, kamu-, “god”) and 目 (me, ma-, “eye”).


菅

菅 (canonical)
菅 (canonical)
suge (romanization)

⟨suɡe₂⟩ → */suɡəɨ/ → /suɡe/
From Old Japanese.

猩々菅

猩々菅 ショウジョウスゲ


菅

菅 (canonical)
kan (romanization)
kwan (romanization)
くわん (hiragana historical)

/kʷan/ → /kan/
From Middle Chinese 菅 (MC kaen).


蔦

蔦 (canonical)
蔦 (canonical)
tsuta (romanization)

蔦の絡まる壁

Japanese ivy (Parthenocissus tricuspidata)


苧

From Old Japanese. Possibly the original name for the plant, or for the fiber from this plant.
Compare Korean 모시 (mosi, “ramie cloth; ramie plant”), Ainu モセ (mose), ムセ (muse, “nettle plant; bast fiber in general”). Alexander Vovin believes that the Old Japanese word was borrowed from Korean.

cog

(obsolete) old name for karamushi: the ramie plant, Boehmeria nivea var. nipononivea


艾

艾髪

the hair of an old person, an old person


蒲

蒲 (canonical)
蒲 (canonical)
gama (romanization)

Typha latifolia
Typha latifolia#Translingual


葎

From Old Japanese. Probably the eastern Japanese form. Compare the alternation in ugura and mugura readings in the etymology of 土竜.
May ultimately derive from obsolete verb 剥る (mukuru, “to peel off, to tear off”), perhaps related to the way that weeds are often removed by tearing the plant out.

牟具良波布 / 伊也之伎屋戸母 / 大皇之 / 座牟等知者 / 玉之可麻思乎
葎延ふ / 賎しき宿も / 大君の / 座さむと知らば / 玉敷かましを
むぐら はふ / いやしき やど も / おほきみ の / まさむ と しらば / たま しかまし を

Even a shabby house surrounded by weed thickets would be as if strewn with jewels if I knew you were there

Mugura hafu / iyashiki yado mo / ohokimi no / masamu to shiraba / tama shikamashi wo

any of various plants of order Gentianales or Urticales, that form thickets, often have thorns and form vines, and prefer wet or disturbed soils; generally regarded as weeds

Humulus scandens: the Japanese hop plant


葎

From Old Japanese. Probably the western Japanese form. Compare the alternation in ugura and mugura readings in the etymology of 土竜.


葎

Probably an alteration or dialectal variant of mugura above. Appears with this reading in the 本草和名 (Honzō Wamyō, “Japanese Names of the Real Herbs”), a pharmacopoeia written in 923. Still listed as an alternate reading in modern dictionaries.

葎草 仁諝、音葎 一名葛律葛 出蘇敬注 一名葛勒蔓 出楕疑 和名毛久良

c. 918, 深根輔仁 [Fukane Sukehito], 本草和名 [Japanese Names of Herbs, Honzō Wamyō]:

Any of various plants of order Gentianales or Urticales, that form thickets, often have thorns and form vines, and prefer wet or disturbed soils; generally regarded as weeds


茸

ja-noun

茸(くさびら) or 茸(くさひら) • (kusabira or kusahira)

茸 (canonical)
茸 (canonical)
kusabira (romanization)
kusahira (romanization)

Extension of 草片 (kusabira, “edible plant or green”), a compound of 草 (kusa, “grass”) + 片 (hira, “something flat”). According to one theory, the historical reading of this word was kusahira, without rendaku, but it's now exclusively pronounced as kusabira.


薊

thistle; various species of the tribe Cardueae

鳥海薊

鳥海薊 チョウカイアザミ


蕨

蕨 (canonical)
蕨 (canonical)
warabi (romanization)

Japanese bracken fern, Pteridium aquilinum subsp. japonicum


葵

葵 (canonical)
aoi (romanization)
afufi (romanization)
あふひ (hiragana historical)

Likely related to Japanese 青い (aoi, “blue, green”).

アオイ: Any plant in the Malvaceae family: mallow

アオイ: Synonym of 双葉葵 (futabaaoi, “Asarum caulescens”)

Asarum caulescens
Wikispecies:Asarum caulescens

(heraldry) A design of mon using the image of Asarum caulescens.

One of the colour schemes used in Japanese traditional garment, with the outer layer in light blue color and the inner layer in light purple color; it is used in the fourth month of the lunar calendar.


藺

藺 (canonical)
i (romanization)
wi (romanization)
ゐ (hiragana historical)


芋

From 芋虫(いもむし) (imomushi), from a player character's resemblance to a caterpillar once moving while prone.

first-person shooting
first-person shooter

(video games) camper, a person who stays in one spot in a first-person shooting game


蕗

蕗 (canonical)
蕗 (canonical)
fuki (romanization)

Petasites japonicus
Petasites japonicus#Translingual


蔓

三味線蔓

三味線蔓 シャミセンヅル


藜

藜 (canonical)
藜 (canonical)
akaza (romanization)

The first part /aka/ means 赤(あか) (aka, “red”), named for it's surface of young leaves covered with magenta coloured powdery hair. Meaning of the later part /za/ is unascertained. Compare 白藜(しろざ) (shiroza, “Chenopodium album”).

Chenopodium album var. centrorubrum#Translingual

Chenopodium album var. centrorubrum; a red variety of white goosefoot


虻

虻 (canonical)
虻 (canonical)
abu (romanization)


蒜

From Old Japanese, from Proto-Japonic *peru (“garlic”). First attested in the Kojiki of 712 CE.


虱

虱 (canonical)
虱 (canonical)
shirami (romanization)

First attested in the Shinsen Jikyō (c. 900 CE).
From Old Japanese, from Proto-Japonic *sirami. Compound of 白 (shira, “white”, combining form) and an uncertain mi.

Pediculus humanus capitis
Pediculus humanus capitis#Translingual

a sucking louse, especially the head louse (Pediculus humanus capitis)


蓼

蓼 (canonical)
蓼 (canonical)
tade (romanization)

From Old Japanese, possibly from Proto-Japonic *tantay on the basis of the obsolete noun 蓼水(ただみ) (tadami, “a broth made from knotweed that is added to miso”), in spite that very few Ryukyuan cognates exist and the first attestation of the compound was in the mid-Heian period.
Attested in the Man'yōshū of 759.


蚋

蚋 (canonical)
蚋 (canonical)
buyu (romanization)
匹 (counter)


蚋

蚋 (canonical)
蚋 (canonical)
buyo (romanization)
匹 (counter)

1920, 島崎藤村, ふるさと, 青空文庫:

蚋は人をも馬をも刺します。あの長くて丈夫な馬の尻尾の房々とした毛は、蚋を追ひ拂ふのに役に立つのです。

Buyo wa hito o mo uma o mo sashimasu. Ano nagakute jōbu na uma no shippo no fusafusa to shita ke wa, buyo o oiharau no ni yaku ni tatsu no desu.

Blackflies bite both people and horses. The long, strong, and bushy hair on horses’ tails is helpful in driving away blackflies.


蚋

蚋 (canonical)
蚋 (canonical)
buto (romanization)
匹 (counter)


蕪

聖護院蕪菁

聖護院蕪菁 しょうごいんかぶら

天王寺蕪

天王寺蕪 てんのうじかぶら


薇

薇 (canonical)
薇 (canonical)
zenmai (romanization)

Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
Osmunda japonica
ja:ゼンマイ

Uncertain. Theories include:
* Shift from 銭舞 (zeni mai, literally “coin + twirling / spinning”), from the way the fiddleheads look like rotating or twirling coins
* Shift from 銭巻き (zeni maki, literally “coin + roll”), from the way the coil of a fiddlehead with the hole in the center looks like a traditional coin (which also has a hole in the center)
* Shift from 千巻き (sen maki, literally “thousand + roll”), from the way the repeating pattern of the fiddleheads look like a lot of small things in a roll
The "roll" derivation would align with the derivation of synonym 巻子 (makago).
First attested in 1709.

Japanese flowering fern (Osmunda japonica), of which the young fiddleheads are edible

発条・撥条

clockwork spring; zenmai, from the visual similarity to a coiled fern fiddlehead


羽

From Old Japanese.
May be cognate with 葉 (ha, “leaf”).


羽

ja-pos

羽(は) or 羽(ば) or 羽(ぱ) or 羽(わ) • (-ha or -ba or -pa or -wa)

羽 (canonical)
羽 (canonical)
羽 (canonical)
羽 (canonical)
-ha (romanization)
-ba (romanization)
-pa (romanization)
-wa (romanization)


蝿

ja-noun

蝿(はえ) or 蝿(ハエ) • (hae) ^(←はへ (fafe)?) (counter 匹)

蝿 (canonical)
蝿 (canonical)
hae (romanization)
fafe (romanization)
匹 (counter)
はへ (hiragana historical)
はい (alternative hiragana)
hai (Rōmaji alternative hiragana)
はひ (alternative hiragana historical)

Extended shinjitai
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
Nihon Shoki
ja:ハエ

From Old Japanese, from Proto-Japonic *papay. First attested in the Nihon Shoki of 720 CE.

1996 February 20 [1988 February 15], Mitsuru Adachi, “チェンジ [Change]”, in SHORT(ショート) PROGRAM(プログラム) [Short Program], 25th edition, volume 1 (fiction), Tokyo: Shogakukan, →ISBN, page 160:

あ、はい。

あ、はい。

(especially) insects of the family Muscidae


蚕

蚕(かいこ) or 蚕(カイコ) • (kaiko) ^(←かひこ (kafiko)?)

蚕 (canonical)
蚕 (canonical)
kaiko (romanization)
kafiko (romanization)
かひこ (hiragana historical)

Daijisen#Online_search_engines
Kōjien
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
Shinmura Izuru

Compound of 飼い (kai, the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “stem or continuative form”) of 飼う (kau, “to raise”)) + 蚕 (ko, “silkworm”).


蛭

蛭 (canonical)
蛭 (canonical)
hiru (romanization)


菊

菊 (canonical)
菊 (canonical)
kiku (romanization)

Short for 菊襲 (kikugasane): a type of 襲の色目 (kasane no irome, “garment-layering color combination”) with white overlayers and purple/sappanwood red inner layers

菊襲

a loop in the shape of a chrysanthemum flower

Short for 菊腸 (kikuwata): the intestines of a cod, resembling that of a chrysanthemum flower


薺

ja-noun

薺(なずな) or 薺(ナズナ) • (nazuna) ^(←なづな (naduna)?)

薺 (canonical)
薺 (canonical)
nazuna (romanization)
naduna (romanization)
なづな (hiragana historical)

/nad͡zuna/ > /nazuna/
Unclear. There are two leading theories, based on older form nadzuna:
* May be derived from natsu na, as in 夏 (natsu, “summer”) + 無 (na, “missing, gone”), from the way the plant dies back in the summer.
* May be derived from nadzuru na, as in 撫づる (nadzuru, “to pet, to pat, to stroke”, the 連体形 (rentaikei, “attributive form”) of Old Japanese verb 撫づ nadzu, modern Japanese 撫でる naderu) + 菜 (na, “edible greens”), from the way the flower clusters may invite handling.

Capsella bursa-pastoris
Capsella bursa-pastoris#Translingual

shepherd's purse, Capsella bursa-pastoris


蜆

蜆 (canonical)
蜆 (canonical)
shijimi (romanization)

clam, basket clam; any of several species in the genus Corbicula


蘿

Lycopodium clavatum
Lycopodium clavatum#Translingual

Synonym of 日陰の蔓 (hikage no kazura, “wolf's-foot clubmoss (Lycopodium clavatum”)


蜷

certain snails; elongate snail, spiral-shelled snail


蛍

From Old Japanese. Appears in the Man'yōshú, compiled some time after 759 CE. Ultimate derivation unknown.
* The initial ho element is almost certainly the ancient form of 火 (hi, “fire”), which appears as ho in compounds such as 炎 (honō, “flame”, originally from ho no ho) or 火屋 (hoya, “lamp chimney”).
* Various theories exist regarding the taru portion. This may be from classical verb 垂る (taru, “to hang down, to droop”, in reference to a firefly's posterior; modern form 垂れる (tareru)), or a vowel shift from verb 照る (teru, “to shine”).


蛍

From Middle Chinese 螢 (MC hweng, “firefly”).


蛾

蛾 (canonical)
蛾 (canonical)
ga (romanization)


蝉

蝉 (canonical)
蝉 (canonical)
semi (romanization)

/sen/ → */semu/ → /semi/
Ultimately from Middle Chinese 蟬 (MC dzyen). Compare 文 (fumi).

generic name for a cicada (any of several insects of the order Hemiptera); locust (chiefly US)


蚤

蚤 (canonical)
蚤 (canonical)
nomi (romanization)

Possibly derived from 飲み (nomi), the nominalized 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “continuative or stem form”) of verb 飲む (nomu, “to drink”), from the way that fleas drink the host's blood.


蜩

蜩 (canonical)
蜩 (canonical)
higurashi (romanization)

[çiɡɯ̟ɾa̠ɕi]


蜩

蜩 (canonical)
蜩 (canonical)
kanakana (romanization)


蠍

蠍 (canonical)
蠍 (canonical)
sasori (romanization)

a scorpion (any of various arachnids of the order Scorpiones)


蛸

蛸 (canonical)
蛸 (canonical)
tako (romanization)

→ Hokkien: 咃鰸 (thak-kho͘h)


藤

藤(ふじ) or 藤(フジ) • (fuji) ^(←ふぢ (fudi) or フヂ (fudi)?)

藤 (canonical)
藤 (canonical)
fuji (romanization)
fudi (romanization)
ふぢ (hiragana historical)
フヂ (hiragana historical)

⟨pudi⟩ → */puⁿdi/ → /ɸud͡ʑi/ → /ɸuʑi/
From Old Japanese 藤 (pudi), from Proto-Japonic *punti.

Short for 藤色 (fujiiro): a light lavender color, akin to wisteria flowers

藤色

a 家紋 (kamon, “family crest”) with designs of Japanese wisteria flowers, leaves, and/or branches


藤

藤 (canonical)
Fuji (romanization)
Fudi (romanization)
ふぢ (hiragana historical)


藤

ja-pos

藤(とう) • (tō)


藤

Possibly from 桂 (katsura, “katsura tree, Cercidiphyllum japonicum”).


蓮

Nelumbo nucifera
Nelumbo nucifera#Translingual


蓮

Daijirin
Kyūjitai
Nelumbo nucifera
Shinjitai
Tōkyō
ja:ハス

Originally a compound of 蜂 (hachi, “bee”) + 巣 (su, “nest, hive”), literally “beehive, honeycomb”, from the way the lotus seed resembles a honeycomb.

older name for hasu below: a lotus plant or flower, Nelumbo nucifera

Hibiscus syriacus
Hibiscus syriacus#Translingual

alternate name for 木槿 (mukuge), Hibiscus syriacus: the rose of Sharon, rose mallow, or St. Joseph's rod


蓮

/hat͡ɕisu/ → */hassu/ → /hasu/
Appears to be a contraction of hachisu above.


蓮

From Middle Chinese 蓮 /莲 (len, “lotus fruit”). Compare modern Mandarin reading lián.


葛

葛 (canonical)
kazura (romanization)
kadura (romanization)
かづら (hiragana historical)

⟨kadura⟩ → /kad͡zuɾa/ → /kazuɾa/
From Old Japanese, from Proto-Japonic *kantura. Cognate with Okinawan 葛 (kanda).

羅生門葛

羅生門葛 ラショウモンカズラ


葛

葛 (canonical)
葛 (canonical)
kuzu (romanization)

→ English: kudzu

Pueraria montana
Pueraria montana#Translingual


藍

the Japanese indigo or Chinese indigo plant, Persicaria tinctoria


藍

ja-noun

藍(あい) or 藍(アイ) • (ai) ^(←あゐ (awi) or アヰ (awi)?)

藍 (canonical)
藍 (canonical)
ai (romanization)
awi (romanization)
あゐ (hiragana historical)
アヰ (hiragana historical)

/awi/ → */aji/ → /ai/
From Old Japanese, from Proto-Japonic *awoy.
There are various theories regarding the ultimate derivation, all suggesting a relation to 青 (awo → ao, “blue”):
* May be an alteration from 青色 (awoiro → aoiro):
*: ⟨awoiro₂⟩ → /awoirə/ → /awɨrə/ → /airo/ → /ai/
* May be a fusion of 青 (awo → ao) and い (i, emphatic particle)
*: */awo i/ → */awɨ/ → */awi/ → */aji/ → /ai/
* May be derived from a compound of 青 (awo → ao) + 居 (wi → i, “there is”), expressing the sense that the indigo plant contains the color blue:
*: /awowi/ → */awːɨ/ → /awi/ → */aji/ → /ai/

藍蝋: indigo pigment made from boiled-down indigo dye liquid

the color indigo, from the dye processed from the stems and leaves of various indigo plants

Short for 藍蝋 (airō): indigo pigment made from boiled-down indigo dye liquid


藍

藍 (canonical)
Ai (romanization)
Awi (romanization)
あゐ (hiragana historical)


草

From Old Japanese, ultimately from Proto-Japonic *kusa. Found in the Man'yōshū, completed some time after 759 CE. Possibly cognate with Korean 꽃 (kkot, “flower”).
The development of the fake, amateur senses is unclear, but probably from an earlier meaning green, referring to the color of the grass.


蚊

From Old Japanese. Possibly related to 噛む (kamu, “to bite”) or 痒い (kayui, “itchy”), although the ultimate derivation remains unknown.

蚊蟻 上可 下音疑 訓安利乃古

794, Shin'yaku Kegonkyō Ongi Shiki, page 161:


蚊

蚊(かあ) • (kā)

Cognate with 蚊 (ka). Likely pronounced long due to being a single mora. Elongation of single mora words is still seen in the Ōsaka dialect with words like teː "hand" from te. The 794 quotation is the oldest extant example of a long vowel in Japanese.

蚊蝄䖟蜺 [...] 上二字加安下二字阿牟

794, Shin'yaku Kegonkyō Ongi Shiki, page 104:

蚊 加阿

1079, Konkōmyō Saishōōkyō Ongi, page 3 (back):


紅

ja-pos

紅(くれない) • (Kurenai) ^(←くれなゐ (Kurenawi)?)

紅 (canonical)
Kurenai (romanization)
Kurenawi (romanization)
くれなゐ (hiragana historical)

⟨kure no₂ awi⟩ → /kurenawi/ → /kurenai/
From Old Japanese.
Shift from 呉の藍 (Kure no ai), itself a compound of 呉 (Kure, “China”) + の (no, possessive particle) + 藍 (ai, “indigo → dye”)). The safflower, from which the crimson dye was extracted, was brought to Japan from China.


紅

*/peni/ → /beni/
First attested in The Pillow Book, completed in 1002.
Shift from *heni, attested in the Wamyō Ruijushō (938 CE) with the original sense of "rouge".
The ni is definitely 丹 (ni, “red earth, cinnabar”), while the initial pe/be remains uncertain.

紅をさす

apply crimson (in face or using a lipstick) → blush; flush; to go red in the face, as from shame or anger

lipstick, lip liner (also traditionally made from safflowers)


紅

ja-pos

紅(こう) • (Kō)


螺

From Old Japanese. Cognate with 粒 (tsubu, “grain; granule, little roundish bit of something”). May have originally been the combining form; compare 神 (kamu, bound form, only used in compounds) and 神 (kami, standalone form).

edible marine whelks of family Buccinidae

Synonym of 田螺 (tanishi, “river snails of family Viviparidae”)


螺

Alternative spelling of 蜷 (nina, “Synonym of 川蜷 (kawanina, “melanian snail, Semisulcospira libertina”)”)


蘭

kanji used to transliterate borrowings from foreign languages, especially Buddhist terms from Sanskrit

Short for 阿蘭陀, 和蘭, 和蘭陀 (Oranda): Holland, the Netherlands


蘭

蘭 (canonical)
蘭 (canonical)
ran (romanization)

From Middle Chinese 蘭 (MC lan).
Compare modern Mandarin 蘭 /兰 (lán).


蘭

Short for 阿蘭陀, 和蘭, 和蘭陀 (Oranda): Holland, the Netherlands, Dutch


蘭

蘭 (canonical)
蘭 (canonical)
araragi (romanization)

[a̠ɾa̠ɾa̠ɡʲi]

From Old Japanese, first attested in the Nihon Shoki (720 CE).
Any further derivation is unclear. Speculative possibilities include:
* The initial ara- may be cognate with 荒い (arai, “rough; wild”). The final -ragi is unknown, however.
* Alternatively, the initial arara- may be cognate with 荒らか (araraka, “rough; wild”). The final -gi may be cognate with 木 (ki, “tree”), perhaps in reference to the way the plant's stalk rises straight and tall.

Taxus cuspidata
Taxus cuspidata#Translingual

Synonym of 一位 (ichii): Taxus cuspidata, the Japanese yew

一位

蘭蒚 養生秘要云、蘭蒚草、蒚音隔、和名阿良々歧

(archaic) Synonym of 野蒜 (nobiru): Allium macrostemon, a species of wild onion


蟹

蟹 (canonical)
蟹 (canonical)
kani (romanization)

Crab
Early Middle Japanese
Kojiki
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
ja:カニ

From Old Japanese; attested in the Kojiki of 712; in turn, reconstructed from Proto-Japonic *kani. Further etymology unknown, although some sources claim that the final syllable ni is related to 丹 (ni, “red clay”).
Many dialects also have a initial voiced consonant in the first syllable.

the act of a prostitute who secretly meets with her lover

a 家紋 (kamon, “family crest”) containing crabs, a front-facing crab in a circle, and square crabs

人形浄瑠璃 人形浄瑠璃#Japanese

a head in 人形浄瑠璃 (ningyōjōruri) whose face is stretched out like a crab; two is used for honest men and another for minor characters

a style used in 生け花 (ikebana) whose metallic part looks like a crab


蜂

蜂 (canonical)
蜂 (canonical)
hachi (romanization)

Bee
Kojiki
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
Wasp
ja:ハチ

/pati/ → /fati/ → /fat͡ɕi/ → /hat͡ɕi/
From Old Japanese. First cited to the Kojiki of 712 CE with the logographic spelling 蜂. In turn, from Proto-Japonic *pati.
Compare Korean 벌 (beol, “bee, wasp, hornet”).

蜂〈𧍙附〉 説文云蜂蠆〈峰帯二音 和名波知〉螫人虫也 四声字苑云𧍙〈音范〉蜂子也

938, Minamoto no Shitagō, Wamyō Ruijushō:

Bee (also 𧍙), has been said it is some kind of scorpion (The two characters are read [in Chinese as] futai; the Japanese pronunciation is fati). [The bee] stings people, insects, etc. (The four characters are read [in Chinese as] syau-zi-won-un). Also called 𧍙 (read [in Chinese as bon]) and FUSI.


蛙

ja-noun

蛙(かえる) or 蛙(カエル) • (kaeru) ^(←かへる (kaferu)?)

蛙 (canonical)
蛙 (canonical)
kaeru (romanization)
kaferu (romanization)
かへる (hiragana historical)

→ Pohnpeian: kairu

Frog
Man'yōshū
Muromachi period
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
Nihon Shoki
Nippo Jisho
ja:カエル
蛙

*⟨kape₁ru⟩ → /kaperu/ → /kaferu/ → /kaweru/ → /kajeru/ → /kaeru/
From Old Japanese.
The Nihon Kokugo Daijiten cites this to the Nihon Shoki of 720, however, that may only be traceable to supplemental glosses added later to the kanbun original.
Spelled phonetically once in the Man'yōshū, completed some time after 759 CE, where it is used phonetically to spell the name of the maple tree, 楓 (kape₁rute > kaede). Generally regarded as the informal or everyday term for frog, in contrast to the formal or poetic term kawazu (see below).
The ultimate derivation is unclear, with numerous theories. Some of the leading ideas include:
* Cognate with 帰る (kaeru, “to return (to a point of origin)”), from the way that some species of frogs return to their birthplace to spawn
* Cognate with 孵る (kaeru, “to hatch (from an egg)”), in reference to tadpoles
* Derived from onomatopoeia, where kape originally referred to the frog's call, suffixed uncertain element -ru
The phonetic development went through a clear stage where the middle mora was pronounced /je/, as illustrated in the 1603 Nippo Jisho entry, spelled cayeru. This was likely a result of the Muromachi period sound shift, where /we/ shifted to /je/, followed later by /je/ merging into /e/ to produce modern /kaeru/.
Now the most common term for frog.


蛙

蛙 (canonical)
kawazu (romanization)
kafadu (romanization)
かはづ (hiragana historical)

⟨kapadu⟩ → */kapadu/ → /kafad͡zu/ → /kawad͡zu/ → /kawazu/
The more formal or poetic counterpart to kaeru (see above). Found in the Man'yōshū, completed some time after 759 CE.
The ultimate derivation is unclear, but the initial kawa portion (ancient kapa) is very likely 川, 河 (kawa, ancient kapa, “river”).
The phonetic development of the term had already progressed to kawadzu by 1603, as seen in the Nippo Jisho entry, spelled cauazzu.

a frog in a well does not know the great ocean

井の中の蛙大海を知らず: → metaphor of a narrow world view based on limited experience

furuike ya kawazu tobikomu mizu no oto

1686, 松尾芭蕉 Matsuo Bashō 古池や蛙飛びこむ水の音 ふるいけやかはづとびこむみづのおと (modern kana: ふるいけやかわずとびこむみずのおと)

old pond -- a frog jumps in -- the sound of water

(Noh theater) a specific mask used in certain Noh plays, depicting a drowned person


蛙

⟨kaperu⟩ → /kaperu/ → /kaferu/ → /kaweru/ → /kajeru/ → /kairu/
Sound shift. Existed alongside earlier kayeru in the late 1500s, early 1600s, as seen in the 1603 Nippo Jisho entry, spelled cairu.

(archaic, possibly obsolete) a frog (amphibious animal)


貂

貂 (canonical)
貂 (canonical)
ten (romanization)

Martes melampus
Martes melampus#Translingual


貘

貘 (canonical)
貘 (canonical)
baku (romanization)

そいつの名(な)前(まえ)は 蛭(ヒル)孤(コ) 悪(あく(・))夢(む(・))を糧(かて)とし生(い)きる 「貘(ばく)」である。

2002 July 27, Mashiba, Shin, “第(だい)壱(いち)夜(や) 下(クダ)リ階(カイ)段(ダン) [Night 1: Downward Stairway]”, in 夢(ゆめ)喰(くい)見(けん)聞(ぶん) [The Dream-Eating Inspector], volume 1 (fiction), Tokyo: Square Enix, page 5:

His name is Hiruko. He feeds on NIGHTMARES. He is a “baku”.

Soitsu no namae wa Hiruko AKUMU o kate toshi ikiru “Baku” de aru.


虎

虎 (canonical)
虎 (canonical)
tora (romanization)

From Old Japanese to₁ra, from Proto-Japonic *tora.
Pellard (2013, 92) includes to₁ra among words with o₁ excepted from the /-o-/ to /-u-/ vowel-raising rule and not originating from earlier diphthongs. According to Vovin (2021, 111), West Old Japanese *to₁ra, instead of expected *tura, is "anomalous" and possibly "a case of a sporadic analogical development".
Vovin (2013) asserts that this word is same as a Silla place name 刀良 (/*tora/), which matches the Old Japanese phonographic spelling.

Panthera tigris
Panthera tigris#Translingual


茶

→ Ainu: チャ (ca)

→ Nivkh: ча (ț’a)

→ Yonaguni: サー (sa:)

From various lects of Middle Chinese 茶 (MC drae). Compare Mandarin 茶 (chá), Hakka 茶 (chhà), Cantonese 茶 (caa⁴). Doublet of チャイ (chai).

a game of drinking varieties of tea and guessing them correctly

Camellia sinensis
Camellia sinensis#Translingual

Synonym of 茶の木 (cha no ki, “tea plant, Camellia sinensis”)


貝

貝 (canonical)
kai (romanization)
kafi (romanization)
かひ (hiragana historical)

Kojiki Man'yōshū Mollusca Shellfish ja:貝

⟨kapi₁⟩ → */kapʲi/ → /kaɸi/ → /kawi/ → /kai/
From Old Japanese, from Proto-Japonic *kapi. Appears voiced in the Kojiki of 712 CE in a compound, with the phonetic man'yōgana spelling 賀比, and in the Man'yōshū, completed some time after 759 CE.

an aquatic shellfish (generally limited to mollusks with calcareous shells such as clams or snails, and excluding crustaceans such as shrimp or crabs)


豹

豹(ひょう) or 豹(ヒョウ) • (hyō) ^(←へう (feu) or ヘウ (feu)?)

豹 (canonical)
豹 (canonical)
hyō (romanization)
feu (romanization)
へう (hiragana historical)
ヘウ (hiragana historical)

Panthera pardus
Panthera pardus#Translingual

a leopard (a large wild cat with a spotted coat, Panthera pardus)


蹄

Compound of ひ (hi, of indeterminate origin) + 爪 (tsume, “nail, claw”). The tsume changes to zume as an instance of rendaku (連濁).
Compare the formation of related terms 平爪 (hirazume, “nail”, literally “flat nail”), 鉤爪 (kagizume, “claw”, literally “hook nail”).
First cited to roughly 934 CE in the Wamyō Ruijushō.

compound

(figurative, uncommon) an excellent horse, a fast horse

有蹄動物

an [[ungulate]], a [[hoofed]] [[animal]]


要

/kani no me/ → /kanome/ → /kaname/
A shift from older 蟹の目 (kani no me, “crab's eye”) from a superficial resemblance of the round pinhead of a folding fan to a crab's eye, influenced by a reanalysis of the term as 金目 (kaname, literally “metal” + visually prominent feature), as the pins were increasingly made from metal instead of earlier bamboo, wood, or whalebone.
First cited to 1220.

Short for 要黐 (kaname mochi): a tree, Japanese photinia (Photinia glabra)

要黐

(architecture) in a certain kind of traditional Japanese hip roof where the rafters splay out like the spines of a fan, the central point to which the rafter lines converge


轡

Compound of 口 (kutsu, “mouth”, apophonic form of 口(くち) (kuchi)) + 環 (wa, “ring”)


豚

豚 (canonical)
豚 (canonical)
buta (romanization)

Domestic pig
Muromachi period
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
ja:ブタ

First attested in the mid-Muromachi period, some time in the late 1480s.
Derivation ultimately unknown.
Some sources list possible theories:
* A shift from 太 (futo, “fatty (fat individual), fatness”)
*: The vowel shift and voicing required to go from futo to buta seem problematic, considering Japanese sound shift patterns.
* Cognate with Okinawan ぶたさん (butasan, “fat”).
* An onomatopoeia from the sound the animal makes, realized in Japanese as ブー (bū)
*: The final -ta remains unexplained.
* Some combination of the two above
* A shift from 猪太 (ibuto, literally “swine + fatty”)
*: Attestable online, but not found in Japanese etymological resources. Difficult to judge provenance or timing.
* A borrowing from Korean or Mongolian
*: Neither Korean 돼지 (dwaeji, “pig”) nor Mongolian гахай (gaxaj, “pig”) show any phonological resemblance to buta, ruling out these possibilities.
The word butakal appears in several languages of the Philippines with a sense of boar (male pig), suggesting a possible source. However, any connection with an Austronesian language is only speculation.
The kanji is from Chinese 豚 (tún, “suckling pig”). Compare Japanese 猪 (inoshishi, “boar”) from Chinese 猪 (zhū, “pig”) and Japanese 猿 (saru, “monkey”) from Chinese 猿 (yuán, “ape”).

赤(あか)菱(びし)さんのカードは８(はち)とＪ(ジャック)のツーペア‥‥三(みつ)矢(や)さんはＡ(エース)のスリーカード 雲(くも)間(ま)さんはＱ(クイーン)のワンペア 緑(みとり)川(かわ)さんは役なし(ブタ)‥‥

2000 July 7 [2000 May 17], Seimaru Amagi with Sato, Fumiya, “FILE(ファイル) 1(いち) 殺(さつ)人(じん)ポーカー Unlucky Men in the Rain 〈問(もん)題(だい)編(へん)〉 [FILE 1: Murderous Poker: Unlucky Men in the Rain ‹Problem›]”, in 明智警視の優雅なる事件簿 [Superintendent Akechi Elegant Case Files], 3rd edition (fiction), Tokyo: Kodansha, →ISBN:

Akabishi-san’s hand would have a two pair, eights and jacks‥‥ Mitsuya-san’s a three of a kind, aces. Kumoma-san’s a one pair, queens. Midorikawa-san’s a high card...

Akabishi-san no kādo wa hachi to jakku no tsū-pea... Mitsuya-san wa ēsu no surī-kādo, Kumoma-san wa kuīn no wan-pea, Midorikawa-san wa buta...

ハイカード ハイカード#Japanese

(colloquial, poker) synonym of ハイカード (hai kādo, “high card”): a no pair, a hand without even a pair (probably a modification of the term for a zero-valued card hand)


辻

辻 (canonical)
tsuji (romanization)
tuzi (romanization)
つじ (hiragana historical)

Daijisen
Extended shinjitai
Kyūjitai
Shinjitai
ja:松村明

/tumuzi/ → */tuːzi/ → /t͡suʑi/
Shift from tsumuji (see below).

Short for 辻総 (tsujibusa): (dated, equestrianism) a decoration attached to the martingale


鯉

ja-noun

鯉(こい) or 鯉(コイ) • (koi) ^(←こひ (kofi) or コヒ (kofi)?)

鯉 (canonical)
鯉 (canonical)
koi (romanization)
kofi (romanization)
こひ (hiragana historical)
コヒ (hiragana historical)

/ko₁pi₁/ → /kopi/ → /kofi/ → */kowi/ → /koi/
From Old Japanese, attested in the Nihon Shoki.

Cyprinus carpio
Cyprinus carpio#Translingual

carp, specifically, the common carp (Cyprinus carpio)


鋏

Originally the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “stem or continuative form”) of verb 鋏む (hasamu, “to be tightly between two things, to be inserted in between””), itself apparently deriving from hasa (“narrowness between other things”, likely cognate with 細 hoso, “skinny, narrowness within the thing itself”) + auxiliary suffix む (mu, “to be or become like something”).
Cognate and homophonic with 挟, 挿 (hasami): “being stuck in between other things”.

空鋏

working a pair of scissors to make the sound of cutting, without actually cutting anything

木鋏

long shears for pruning, such as for a hedge

銀葉鋏

tweezers for holding silver leaf in traditional Japanese incense

唐鋏

western-style scissors, with a pivot in the center and forming an X shape

握り鋏

traditional Japanese shears, with a join at the back end and forming a U shape

鋏を入れる

to put the scissors in → to cut with scissors; to punch a ticket; to trim vegetation or hair

(zootomy) pincers or claws as found on a crab, lobster, or other arthropod


鐙

鐙 (canonical)
abumi (romanization)
あぶみ (hiragana historical)

足(あ) (a, “foot”) + 踏(ふ)み (fumi, continuative form of 踏(ふ)む (fumu, “to step on”)). The fumi changes to bumi as an instance of rendaku (連濁).

ja-compound

1904, 河口慧海, チベット旅行記, 青空文庫:

低い椽に腰を掛けたような具合にごく鐙の紐を短くして足を折って乗って居る。

Hikui en ni koshi o kaketa yō na guai ni goku abumi no himo o mijikaku shite ashi o otte notte iru.

They ride with their stirrup straps very short and with their legs bent, in a manner like that of sitting on a low en.

舌短鐙

舌短鐙 したみじかあぶみ


雉

雉 (canonical)
雉 (canonical)
kiji (romanization)

Phasianus versicolor
Phasianus versicolor#Translingual


隼

隼 (canonical)
隼 (canonical)
hayabusa (romanization)

Early Middle Japanese
Kojiki
Late Middle Japanese
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
Nihon Shoki
ja:ハヤブサ

Attested in early Old Japanese texts: the Kojiki (712) <波夜夫佐> and the Nihon Shoki (720) <破夜歩佐>.
Further etymology is uncertain; a popular etymology is that it derives from a corruption of 早 (haya-, “early; fast”) + 翼 (tsubasa, “wing (bird)”).

2007 October 20, Izawa, Hiroshi with Yamada, Kotaro, “最(さい)終(しゅう)話(わ) それぞれの道(みち)へ [Final Chapter: Epilog]”, in ファイアーエムブレム 覇者の剣 [Fire Emblem: Sword of Champions], Jump Remix edition, volume 5 (fiction), Tokyo: Shueisha, →ISBN, page 355:

双剣の隼キルマー

Falco peregrinus
Falco peregrinus#Translingual

the Nakajima Ki-43: a name of a World War II fighter jet


韮

韮 (canonical)
韮 (canonical)
nira (romanization)

Allium tuberosum
Allium tuberosum#Translingual


鞦

Dated form of 尻繋.


雁

雁 (canonical)
雁 (canonical)
gan (romanization)

From Middle Chinese 雁 (ngænᴴ, “wild goose”).


雁

Said to be from the cry of a wild goose.

corona

circumference of the base of the glans penis in human males


雛

*/pina/ → /fina/ → /hina/
Appears to be from Old Japanese. The derivative form hiwina (later hīna) appears in The Tale of Genji, dated to before 1021.


駒

Compound of 子(こ) (ko, “child”) + 馬(ま) (ma, “horse”).
See also 子馬(こうま) (kouma).

(music) bridge (the piece, on string instruments, that supports the strings from the sounding board)


魬

魬 (canonical)
魬 (canonical)
hamachi (romanization)

(Kansai) young Japanese amberjack, yellowtail


鯳

A 国字 (kokuji, “Japanese-coined character”).
Ideogrammic compound (會意 /会意): semantic 魚 (“fish”) + semantic 底 (“bottom”) - Alaska pollock is semipelagic.


鮴

a sea perch or rockfish, a fish of genus Sebastes


鯎

ja-noun

鯎(うぐい) or 鯎(ウグイ) • (ugui) ^(←うぐひ (ugufi)?)

鯎 (canonical)
鯎 (canonical)
ugui (romanization)
ugufi (romanization)
うぐひ (hiragana historical)

Possibly originally a compound of 鵜 (u, “cormorant”) + 食い (kui, “eating, gobbling”).

compound

Tribolodon hakonensis
Tribolodon hakonensis#Translingual

the Japanese dace, also known as the big-scaled redfin: Tribolodon hakonensis, an edible fish in family Cyprinidae


鮃

鮃 (canonical)
鮃 (canonical)
hirame (romanization)


鯒

鯒 (canonical)
鯒 (canonical)
kochi (romanization)


鮬

鮬 (canonical)
鮬 (canonical)
seigo (romanization)


鰆

Japanese Spanish mackerel, Scomberomorus niphonius


鱪

鱪 (canonical)
鱪 (canonical)
shīra (romanization)


鯆

鯆 (canonical)
鯆 (canonical)
iruka (romanization)

See the 海豚 entry for more details.

Alternative spelling of 海豚: a dolphin or porpoise


鯣

鯣 (canonical)
鯣 (canonical)
surume (romanization)

→ English: surume

→ Korean: 수루매 (surumae)

Dried shredded squid
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
Wamyō Ruijushō
ja:スルメ

Unknown.
The oldest sense when first attested in the Wamyō Ruijushō of 934 is squid, apparently in reference to the Japanese flying squid commonly used after being dried. By 1334, the sense shifted to refer to the dried foodstuff.
The "dried squid" sense is now the most common, while the "type of squid" sense is often expressed using the term 鯣烏賊 (surume ika) instead.

Japanese flying squid
Japanese flying squid

the Japanese flying squid or Todarodes pacificus, commonly used after being dried


鱛

鱛 (canonical)
鱛 (canonical)
eso (romanization)


鰰

鰰 (canonical)
鰰 (canonical)
hatahata (romanization)


鯰

A 国字 (kokuji, “Japanese-coined character”), using the 魚 radical on the left for its meaning of “fish”, and 念 on the right for its phonetic value as a homophone of 粘 (nen, “sticky; slimy”).


鯊

鯊 (canonical)
鯊 (canonical)
haze (romanization)


鰶

Konosirus punctatus
Konosirus punctatus#Translingual

dotted gizzard shad (Konosirus punctatus)


鰶

鰶 (canonical)
鰶 (canonical)
konoshiro (romanization)

dotted gizzard shad, Konosirus punctatus

燕鰶

threadfin, specifically striped threadfin


鮫

鮫 (canonical)
鮫 (canonical)
same (romanization)

From Old Japanese, from Proto-Japonic *samay.

1999 July 5, “グレート・ホワイト [Great White]”, in BOOSTER 3, Konami:

A giant white shark. It is utterly impossible to get out of its gigantic biting jaw.

巨大な白いサメ。大きな口で噛みつかれたら逃れられない。

Kyodai na shiroi same. Ōki na kuchi de kamitsukaretara nogarerarenai.


鯤

(Chinese mythology) a mythological giant fish that is several thousand 里 (ri, “leagues”) long and that lives in the northern seas


鯥

鯥 (canonical)
鯥 (canonical)
mutsu (romanization)


鱓

鱓 (canonical)
鱓 (canonical)
utsubo (romanization)


鱈

鱈 (canonical)
鱈 (canonical)
tara (romanization)


鴫

鴫 (canonical)
鴫 (canonical)
shigi (romanization)

sandpiper; snipe, a general term for birds in the family Scolopacidae


鰧

A bottom-dwelling spiny fish, such as those in families Uranoscopidae and Synanceiidae.


鱏

鱏 (canonical)
ei (romanization)
efi (romanization)
えひ (hiragana historical)

From Ainu アイ (ay, “arrow”, by extension, "point"), by its stingers .


鰊

鰊 (canonical)
鰊 (canonical)
kado (romanization)

(chiefly Tohōku) Pacific herring (Clupea pallasii)


鰊

鰊 (canonical)
鰊 (canonical)
nishin (romanization)

Uncertain.
* Probably from ニ親 (ni shin, two + parent, as in father and mother), due to the large number of herring offsprings.
* Can also be from 煮渋 (ni shibu, boil(ed dish) + bitter).
* From 二身 (ni shin, two + body), from the way it is prepared before cooking.
* It can also be from a clipping of 西の海の魚 (nishi no umi no uo, literally, "fish of the west seas").


鱸

鱸 (canonical)
鱸 (canonical)
suzuki (romanization)


鰤

鰤 (canonical)
鰤 (canonical)
buri (romanization)

Japanese amberjack, yellowtail, Seriola quinqueradiata


鴟

鴟 (canonical)
鴟 (canonical)
tobi (romanization)

Alternative spelling of 鳶 (“black kite”)


鯱

Synonym of 松毬魚 (matsukasa-uo, “Japanese pinecone fish}, Monocentris japonica”)


鵟

鵟 (canonical)
鵟 (canonical)
nosuri (romanization)


鱒

鱒 (canonical)
鱒 (canonical)
masu (romanization)

→ English: masu

Generally thought to derive from a Korean dialectal term for the fish, which would have entered Japanese as 松魚 (matsu no uo, "pine fish", possibly in reference to wooded streams where it can be caught), combining with or being influenced by the verb 増す (masu, "to be excellent, superior", in reference to the size, flavor, and other favorable characteristics of the fish).

trout, sea trout: more specifically, fish belonging to genera of the family Salmonidae: Salmo, Oncorhynchus, Coregonus, or Salvelinus


鯖

鯖 (canonical)
鯖 (canonical)
saba (romanization)

From Old Japanese, further etymology uncertain. Possibly cognate with 秋刀魚 (sanma, “Pacific saury”), which can be translated to "mackerel pike".
Attested in the Izumo Fudoki, completed in 733 CE.

mackerel, especially chub mackerel (Scomber japonicus)

二条鯖

double-lined mackerel (Grammatorcynus bilineatus)


鯔

鯔 (canonical)
鯔 (canonical)
bora (romanization)

Unknown. Japanese dictionaries do not indicate when this term first appears in text.
Monolingual sources speculate that this may be from some element ho ("fat") + 腹 (hara, “belly”), but there is no solid evidence for any ho element with this meaning; the closest by sound is 頬 (ho, “cheek”, from ancient popo), and the closest by meaning is 太 (futo, “fatness”, from ancient puto).
The same fish name has suggestive overlap with Sahidic Coptic ⲃⲱⲣⲉ (bōre), Bohairic Coptic ⲫⲟⲣⲓ (phori) and ϥⲟⲣⲓ (fori), whence its modern Arabic name بُورِي (būrī).

Mugil cephalus
Mugil cephalus#Translingual


鰹

ja-noun

鰹(かつお) or 鰹(カツオ) • (katsuo) ^(←かつを (katwo) or カツヲ (katwo)?)

鰹 (canonical)
鰹 (canonical)
katsuo (romanization)
katwo (romanization)
かつを (hiragana historical)
カツヲ (hiragana historical)

New Latin: Katsuwonus

From Old Japanese katuwo. Found in the Man'yōshū of 759.
/katuwo/ → /kat͡suwo/ → /kat͡suo/
Two possible derivations:
* A shift from a compound of 堅 (kata-, stem meaning "firm, hard") + 魚 (uo, “fish”), from the long-standing practice of drying lower-grade tuna into hard blocks, in part due to the common presence of parasites. A folk etymology also derives this kanji character, compare 木工 → 杢 (moku, “woodworker”, archaic) and 麻呂 → 麿 (maro, first-person pronoun, archaic).
* A shift from a compound of 勝つ (katsu, “to win”) + 魚 (uo, “fish”).
Considering the rules of Old Japanese phonology, specifically that two vowels are not allowed in sequence, resulting in elision or fusion, the kata + uo → katuo shift seems likely.
The kanji spelling is an example of 国(こっ)訓(くん) (kokkun, “Japanese-specific kun'yomi”) and its use may stem from the 堅魚 spelling.

秋鰹

bonito caught in autumn; akigatsuo, obscure

真魚鰹

managatsuo, a species of butterfish, Pampus punctatissimus

Katsuwonus pelamis
Katsuwonus pelamis#Translingual

Short for 鰹木 (katsuogi): a log on the roof of a shrine set perpendicular to the ridgepole

鰹木

Short for 鰹節 (katsuobushi): smoked and dried skipjack tuna

鰹節

(obsolete) Short for 鰹虫 (katsuomushi): a biting midge; a water strider


鳧

鳧 (canonical)
鳧 (canonical)
keri (romanization)


鳧

鳧 (canonical)
鳧 (canonical)
kamo (romanization)

Alternative spelling of 鴨 (kamo, “duck”)


鮎

鮎 (canonical)
鮎 (canonical)
ayu (romanization)

Edo period
Empress Jingū
Ise Shrine
Muromachi period
Nihon Shoki
Old Japanese

From Old Japanese of uncertain derivation.
* One commonly encountered etymology suggests that ayu may derive from 饗 (ae, “hosting someone to a meal”), in reference to the way that this fish may be used in Shinto offerings. However, this would have been pronounced ape in ancient times, and while this ape did later become ahe, and a shift from -he to -ye did occur in many terms during the Muromachi period, the word ayu in reference to the fish appeared in the Nihon Shoki (720 CE), and is thus too old for this shift to have occurred.
* Another common etymology states that ayu may be from extinct Old Japanese term 落ゆ (ayu, “to fall, as nuts from a tree; to flow down, as liquid in a stream”), in reference to the way that ayu swim downstream to spawn in the autumn. Some references suggest that this is not very eventful and that this etymology is therefore unlikely. However, there are terms specific to the ayu downstream migration, such as 落鮎 (ochiayu, “ayu migrating downstream to spawn”) and 鮎落つ (ayuotsu, “ayu migrating downstream to spawn”), suggesting that this event has been culturally important enough that the 落ゆ (ayu) derivation may be plausible.
* Alternatively, this term may be borrowed from Ainu アイ (ay, “arrow”) in reference to how fast the fish moves. See also obsolete Japanese reading ai below.
The kanji spelling 鮎 in reference to sweetfish is specific to Japan, probably in reference to the way the fish (魚) stakes out its territory (占). There is another tale wherein Empress Jingū caught an ayu and thereby prophesied (also spelled 占) the outcome of a battle, but this is likely a folk etymology. In China and elsewhere, the 鮎 character refers instead to catfish.
The kanji spelling 年魚 is in reference to the common one-year lifespan of this fish.
The kanji spelling 香魚 is in reference to its sweet-tasting flesh.

美曳之弩能曳之弩能阿喩阿喩舉曾播施麻倍母曳岐愛俱流之衛奈疑能母縢制利能母縢阿例播俱流之衛 [Man'yōgana]
み吉野の吉野の鮎鮎こそは島辺も良きえ苦しゑ水葱の本芹の本あれは苦しゑ [Modern spelling]

mi-Eshino no Eshino no ayu ayu koso wa shimabe mo eki e kurushie nagi no moto seri no moto are wa kurushie

施麻倍母曳岐 しまへも𛀁き

阿例播俱流之衛 あれはくるしゑ

Plecoglossus altivelis
Plecoglossus altivelis#Translingual

ayu or sweetfish (Plecoglossus altivelis)

鮎掛: ayu catching: fishing for ayu with a hook and line

a kind of dish made with tofu cut into long strips

then prepared with smartweed vinegar in a fashion similar to salt-roasted ayu

鮎汲

using a net on a pole to catch young ayu as they swim upstream in March or April

鮎祭

a festival formerly held at Ise Shrine on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month

鮎豆腐

ground ayu sandwiched between layers of strained tofu, placed on a wooden board, and steam

鮎籠

an ayu basket, made of bamboo with a narrow opening and bulging bottom, used in ancient times to trap ayu

vinegaring a gutted and cleaned ayu fish

then presenting with its belly packed with rice


鮎

Obsolete variant of ayu pronunciation. May have been the original pronunciation.

(obsolete) ayu or sweetfish (Plecoglossus altivelis)

鮎並, 鮎魚女

a greenling, a kind of marine fish, so named for its similarities to ayu


鮎

鮎 (canonical)
namazu (romanization)
namadu (romanization)
なまづ (hiragana historical)

The kanji spelling 鮎 in reference to sweetfish is specific to Japan. In China and elsewhere, the 鮎 character refers instead to catfish. See the 鯰 entry for more detail about the Japanese term namazu.


鵐

(archaic) bunting (any of various small birds, mostly in the genus Emberiza)

黄頭鵐

golden-crowned sparrow (Zonotrichia atricapilla)


鰯

A 国字 (kokuji, “Japanese-coined character”).


鰯

鰯 (canonical)
鰯 (canonical)
iwashi (romanization)

Russian: иваси́ f (ivasí)

From Old Japanese. Attested in a mokkan dated around 756.
Seemingly connected to 弱し (yowashi, “weak”, modern 弱い (yowai)), from the way that the fish quickly dies. However, the pitch accents mismatch; the Heian period accent for iwashi is {{#tag:syntaxhighlight||inline="True"|lang="text"|style="white-space:pre-wrap;"}}, contradicting to the accent of yowashi, which has {{#tag:syntaxhighlight||inline="True"|lang="text"|style="white-space:pre-wrap;"}} in the Heian period.

鰯 楊氏漢語抄云鰯〈伊和之 今案本文未詳〉

938, Minamoto no Shitagō, Wamyō Ruijushō, volume 8:

Pilchard: [Part of the] Willow Family. 鰯 is [also] in the Kangoshō. ([read] iwasi; currently, records of its origin are unknown)

a pilchard (especially a Japanese pilchard) (Sardinops melanostictus)

Osmanthus heterophyllus
Osmanthus heterophyllus#Translingual

on the night of the Setsubun, a pilchard is placed at the entrance along with a 柊 (hīragi, “Osmanthus heterophyllus”) to ward off evil spirits


鮪

鮪 (canonical)
鮪 (canonical)
maguro (romanization)

Possible compounds include:
* 目 (ma, “eye, bound form”) + 黒 (kuro, “black”), in reference to their eye color.
* 真 (ma, “true”) + 黒 (kuro, “black”), in reference to the color of their back.
The kuro changes to guro as an instance of rendaku (連濁).

com

みりん。地域猫。最近までマクロのことをマグロと思っていた。

Mirin: A neighbour cat. Until recently often confused macros with tuna [maguro].

Mirin. Chīkineko. Saikin made makuro no koto o maguro to omotteita.

(colloquial) Short for 黒鮪 (kuromaguro): a Pacific bluefin tuna, Thunnus orientalis

黒鮪

(slang) a dead fish (a sexual partner who lies flat during sex)


鮪

⟨sibi₁⟩ → */sibʲi/ → /ɕibi/
From Old Japanese.

意布袁余志斯毘都久阿麻余斯賀阿禮婆宇良胡本斯祁牟斯毘都久志毘

宇良胡本斯祁牟 うらこほしけむ

ouo yoshi shibi tsuku ama yo shi ga areba uragōshikemu shibi tsuku Shibi


鱧

鱧 (canonical)
鱧 (canonical)
hamo (romanization)

daggertooth pike conger
daggertooth pike conger

daggertooth pike conger, a type of eel, Muraenesox cinereus


鵺

(please add an English translation of this quotation)

712, Kojiki [...] 阿遠夜麻邇 奴延波那伎 佐怒都登理 岐藝斯波登與牟 [...]

鵼 唐韵云 鵼 音空 漢語抄云 沼江 新撰字鏡 鵺 鵼 並訓奴江 按奴延見古事記八千戈神歌 万葉集奴延鳥奴要子鳥即是 [...] 今俗呼鬼都具美 [...] 按關東俗呼虎都具美 恠鳥也

938, Minamoto no Shitagō, Wamyō Ruijushō, volume 7, page 21:

Nue The Tangyun calls it 'Nue'- sound kū, The Extracts of Chinese Vocabulary call it nuye The Shinsen Jikyō 'nue' 'nue' common reading nuye; check nuye seen in Kojiki's Eight Thousand Spears divine poem, in Man'yōshū as nuye bird, assuming nuye bird is this … nowadays folk call it 'demon-thrush' … check Kantō folk calling it tiger-thrush, it is an uncanny bird

Zoothera aurea
Zoothera aurea#Translingual

Synonym of 虎鶇 (tora tsugumi, “White's Thrush, Zoothera aurea”)


鵰

鵰 (canonical)
chō (romanization)
teu (romanization)
てう (hiragana historical)


鶲

Old World flycatcher
Old World flycatcher


鶸

鶸 (canonical)
鶸 (canonical)
hiwa (romanization)
fifa (romanization)
ひは (hiragana historical)


鵯

鵯 (canonical)
鵯 (canonical)
hiyodori (romanization)

鵯上戸

鵯上戸 ヒヨドリジョウゴ

bulbul, a bird in the family Pycnonotidae


鴲

鴲 (canonical)
鴲 (canonical)
shime (romanization)

⟨sime₂⟩ → */siməɨ/ → /ɕime/
Likely from Old Japanese.


鴲

⟨pi₁me₂⟩ → */pʲiməɨ/ → /fime/ → /hime/
From Old Japanese.
Distinct from 姫 (⟨pi₁me₁⟩ → hime, “(imperial) princess”).

近江之海泊八十有八十嶋之嶋之埼邪伎安利立有花橘乎末枝尓毛知引懸仲枝尓伊加流我懸下枝尓比米乎懸己之母乎取久乎不知己之父乎取久乎思良尓伊蘇婆比座与伊可流我等比米登

伊蘇婆比座与 いそばひをるよ

Ōmi no umi tomari yaso ari yaso shima no shima no saki-zaki ari-tateru hana-tachibana o hotsue ni mochi hikikake nakatsue ni ikaruga kake shizue ni hime o kake naga haha o toraku o shirani naga chichi o toraku o shirani isobai-oru yo ikaruga to hime to

(obsolete) the hawfinch, Coccothraustes coccothraustes


鯛

ja-noun

鯛(たい) or 鯛(タイ) • (tai) ^(←たひ (tafi) or タヒ (tafi)?)

鯛 (canonical)
鯛 (canonical)
tai (romanization)
tafi (romanization)
たひ (hiragana historical)
タヒ (hiragana historical)

Acanthopagrus schlegelii
Japanese butterfish
Kyūjitai
Shinjitai
ja:鯛
man-of-war fish

/tapi₁/ → /tapi/ → /tafi/ → /tai/
From Old Japanese.

醤酢尓蒜都伎合而鯛願吾尓勿所見水䓗乃煮物

hishio-su ni hiru tsukikatete tai-negau ware ni na mi(s)e so nagi no atsumono

Don't show a fellow who's begging for a nice sea bream all fixed with bean paste, with vinegar and pounded garlic, such a thing as water-leek soup!

sea bream (fish of the family Sparidae); porgy


鳰

鳰 (canonical)
nio (romanization)
nifo (romanization)
にほ (hiragana historical)


鳰

鳰 (canonical)
鳰 (canonical)
kaitsuburi (romanization)


鶚

鶚 (canonical)
鶚 (canonical)
misago (romanization)


鰈

鰈 (canonical)
karei (romanization)
karefi (romanization)
かれひ (hiragana historical)

/kara eɸi/ → /kareɸi/ → /karewi/ → /karei/
Originally from a shift of 王余魚 (kara-ei) attested in the Honzō Wamyō, itself a compound of 韓 (Kara, “Korea”, euphemism) + 鱝 (ei, “[a kind of] ray”); it is said that the flounder was imported from Korea to Japan in the Samhan period, and was regarded to the Koreans at that time as “beautiful”. From its ray-like appearance, the medieval Japanese had mistaken the flounder for such.

左鮃右鰈

左鮃右鰈 ひだりひらめみぎかれい

王餘魚 朱厓記云：南海有_二王餘魚_一［和名：加良衣比、俗_二云：加禮比_一］昔、越王作_レ鱠不_レ盡餘半棄_レ水因以_二半身_一爲_レ魚、故曰_二王餘魚_一也

Righteye flounder (literally “king-remaining fish”): according to the Zhūyá chronicle, at the southern sea there exists a righteye flounder (Japanese name kara-ei, commonly said karei); long ago, the king of Yuè had not completely made kuài and discarded half of the remaining into the water; as a result half of his body turned into a fish, hence the name.

a righteye flounder (flatfish of the family Pleuronectidae)


鷭

鷭 (canonical)
鷭 (canonical)
ban (romanization)


鴎

鴎 (canonical)
鴎 (canonical)
kamome (romanization)

Extended shinjitai
black-legged kittiwake
ja:カモメ
pomarine skua

Uncertain. One theory suggests from 鴨(かも) (kamo, “duck”) + め (-me, suffix expressing familiarity).
Compare 雀 (suzume, “sparrow”) and 燕 (tsubame, “swallow”).


鶇

鶇 (canonical)
鶇 (canonical)
tsugumi (romanization)

[t͡sɨɡɯ̟mʲi]

From the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “continuative or stem form”) of verb 噤む (tsugumu, “to shut up, to become quiet”), from the way the birds cease singing after summer has ended.

Turdus eunomus
Turdus eunomus#Translingual

(more specifically) a dusky thrush: Turdus eunomus


鷸

鷸 (canonical)
鷸 (canonical)
shigi (romanization)