西

Originally a compound of 去に (ini, “going away”, the 連(れん)用(よう)形(けい) (ren'yōkei, “stem or continuative form”) of the verb 去(い)ぬ (inu, “to go away”)) + し (shi, “wind; (by extension) direction”, as seen in other ancient-derived words as 嵐 (arashi, “storm”, literally “wild + wind”), 旋風 (tsumuji, “whirlwind”), 東 (higashi, “east”, from older pi muka si, literally “sun + facing + wind/direction”)).
First cited in the Kojiki of 712, with the phonetic spelling 爾斯 (nisi).

compound

(Buddhism) synonym of 西方浄土 (Saihō Jōdo): the western paradise of Amitabha Buddha

西方浄土

(Buddhism) short for 西本願寺 (Nishi Hongan-ji): a Buddhist temple in Kyoto

西本願寺

(historical) a red-light district in Edo-period Shinjuku (as it was located west of Edo Castle)

a place name, especially the name of various wards in major cities throughout Japan


酉

From 鶏 (niwatori, tori, “chicken”), from 庭 (niwa, “garden”) + 鳥 (tori, “bird”).

the Rooster, the tenth of the twelve Earthly Branches


酉

酉 (canonical)
Yū (romanization)
Iu (romanization)
いう (hiragana historical)


CIA

中央情報局 中央情報局#Japanese

synonym of 中央情報局 (Chūō Jōhōkyoku, “Central Intelligence Agency”)


FBI

ja-pos

FBI(エフビーアイ) or FBI(エフ・ビー・アイ) • (Efubīai or Efu Bī Ai)

FBI (canonical)
FBI (canonical)
Efubīai (romanization)
Efu Bī Ai (romanization)

2020, “るるちゃんの自(じ)殺(さつ)配(はい)信(しん) (Ruru-chan no jisatsu haishin) [Ruru-chan's Suicide Livestream]”, in の子(こ) (Noko) (lyrics), 児(じ)童(どう)カルテ (Jidō karute), performed by 神(しん)聖(せい)かまってちゃん (Shinsei Kamatte-chan) [Shinsei Kamattechan]:

You won't get her message
even if you ask the FBI

FBIに聞いたって分かんない
彼女のメッセージ

efubīai ni kītatte wakannai
kanojo no messēji

連邦捜査局 連邦捜査局#Japanese

Federal Bureau of Investigation
Federal Bureau of Investigation

synonym of 連邦捜査局 (Renpō Sōsakyoku, “Federal Bureau of Investigation”); the FBI


EU

EU(イーユー) • (Īyū)


ソ連

Compare Chinese 蘇聯 /苏联 (Sūlián), Korean 소련(蘇聯) (Soryeon), Vietnamese Liên Xô.
連 is a daiyōji replacing 聯.

1999 September 16, Motohiro Katou, “ヤコブの階(かい)段(だん) [Jacob’s Ladder]”, in [Ｑ.](キュー)[Ｅ.](イー)[Ｄ.](ディー) [証](しょう)[明](めい)[終](しゅう)[了](りょう) [Q.E.D. Quod Erat Demonstrandum], volume 4 (fiction), Tokyo: Kodansha, →ISBN, page 90:

The Soviet Union collapsed and the Cold War ended.

ソ連が崩壊して東西冷戦は終わったんだ

Soren ga hōkai shite Tōzai Reisen wa owatta n da

ソビエト連邦 ソビエト連邦#Japanese

Soviet Union
Soviet Union#English:_Q15180

clipping of ソビエト連邦 (Sobieto Renpō): (historical) Soviet Union (a former transcontinental country in Europe and Asia (1922–1991), now split into Russia and 14 other countries)


FIFA

国際サッカー連盟 国際サッカー連盟#Japanese

synonym of 国際サッカー連盟 (Kokusai Sakkā Renmei, “International Federation of Association Football”); FIFA


月

⟨tuki₂⟩ → */tukɨ/ → */t͡sukɨ/ → /t͡suki/
From Old Japanese 月 (tuki₂), ultimately from Proto-Japonic *tukui.
For the vowel alternation, see WT:AJPX#Standalone forms and combining forms.


IMF

国際通貨基金 国際通貨基金#Japanese

International Monetary Fund
International Monetary Fund

synonym of 国際通貨基金 (Kokusai Tsūka Kikin, “International Monetary Fund”); the IMF


アジア

From Chinese 亞細亞 /亚细亚 (Yàxìyà), in turn from Latin Asia. Pronunciation was probably influenced by Dutch Azië.

Asia (the largest continent, located between Europe and the Pacific Ocean)

(historical) Asia (an ancient province of the Roman Empire in modern western Turkey, existing between 133 BC (during the Roman Republic) and the 7th century AD)


アフリカ

[a̠ɸɯ̟ɾʲika̠]

Africa (the continent south of Europe and between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans)

(historical) Africa (a former province of the Roman Empire, containing what is now Tunisia and portions of coastal Algeria and Libya)


アメリカ

Amerigo Vespucci
Daijirin
Daijisen
Kyōsuke Kindaichi
Kōjien
Shinmura Izuru
ja:松村明

Borrowed from English America, from New Latin America, feminine form of Americus, a Latinization of the given name of Amerigo Vespucci (1451-1512), an Italian explorer.

アメリカ大陸

the Americas, specifically the continent

南アメリカ、北アメリカ、中央アメリカ

Minami Amerika, Kita Amerika, Chūō Amerika

South America, North America, Central America

アメリカ州

(chiefly in compounds, due to possible ambiguity) America (one of the continents of North America or South America)

1999 September 16, Motohiro Katou, “ヤコブの階段 (Yakobu no Kaidan) [Jacob’s Ladder]”, in Q.E.D. 証明終了 (Kyū Ī Dī Shōmei Shūryō) [Q.E.D. (manga)], volume 4 (fiction), Tokyo: Kodansha, →ISBN, page 90:

Well, duh!! America is the "world police" after all!!

当たり前さ‼それが〝世界の警察〟たるアメリカの役目だろ‼

Atarimae sa‼ Sore ga〝sekai no keisatsu〟taru Amerika no yakume daro‼

当たり前さ‼それが〝世界の警察〟たるアメリカの役目だろ‼

United States of America
United States of America#English

America, United States of America (a country in North America)


イギリス

From Portuguese inglês (“English”, adjective). Compare English English (adjective), Mandarin 英吉利 (Yīngjílì, “England”).

グレートブリテン及び北アイルランド連合王国

Gurēto Buriten oyobi Kita Airurando Rengō Ōkoku

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

United Kingdom
United Kingdom#English:_Q145

United Kingdom (a kingdom and country in Northern Europe)

イギリス軍

イギリス陸軍

(loosely, chiefly attributive) synonym of ブリテン (Buriten, “Britain”)

2001 March 10 [1998 December 16], Motohiro Katou, “ミネルヴァの梟(ふくろう) [Owl of Minerva]”, in Ｑ.(キュー)Ｅ.(イー)Ｄ.(ディー) 証(しょう)明(めい)終(しゅう)了(りょう) [Q.E.D. Quod Erat Demonstrandum], 9th edition, volume 1 (fiction), Tokyo: Kodansha, →ISBN, page 102:

The king of hearts is Charles I of England

ハートのＫはイギリスのチャールズ一世

Hāto no kingu wa Igirisu no Chāruzu Issei

イングランド イングランド#Japanese

(loosely) synonym of イングランド (Ingurando): England (a constituent country of the United Kingdom)


愛

From Middle Chinese 愛 (MC 'ojH).
Compare modern Mandarin 愛／爱 (ài).


愛

Originally a compound of 真 (ma, “true, genuine”) + な (na), an Old Japanese version of modern Japanese の (no, possessive particle).
The use of 愛 here is an example of ateji (当て字).


愛

ja-pos

愛(あづみ) or 愛(ああい) or 愛(あゝい) or 愛(あいか) or 愛(あいす) or 愛(あき) or 愛(あこ) or 愛(あみか) or 愛(あおい) or 愛(ありさ) or 愛(あや) or 愛(あゆ) or 愛(ちぎり) or 愛(ちか) or 愛(ちかし) or 愛(えりな) or 愛(はあと) or 愛(ひかり) or 愛(いと) or 愛(いとし) or 愛(いつみ) or 愛(いずみ) or 愛(かな) or 愛(かなえ) or 愛(かなさ) or 愛(きずな) or 愛(こころ) or 愛(こゝろ) or 愛(このむ) or 愛(まどか) or 愛(まなぶ) or 愛(まなみ) or 愛(めづる) or 愛(めご) or 愛(めぐ) or 愛(めぐみ) or 愛(めぐむ) or 愛(めい) or 愛(なる) or 愛(なるこ) or 愛(のぞみ) or 愛(らぶ) or 愛(るい) or 愛(さら) or 愛(さらん) or 愛(つぐみ) or 愛(つくみ) or 愛(うい) or 愛(よし) or 愛(よしき) or 愛(よしみ) • (Azumi or Āi or Aika or Aisu or Aki or Ako or Amika or Aoi or Arisa or Aya or Ayu or Chigiri or Chika or Chikashi or Erina or Hāto or Hikari or Ito or Itoshi or Itsumi or Izumi or Kana or Kanae or Kanasa or Kizuna or Kokoro or Konomu or Madoka or Manabu or Manami or Mezuru or Mego or Megu or Megumi or Megumu or Mei or Naru or Naruko or Nozomi or Rabu or Rui or Sara or Saran or Tsugumi or Tsukumi or Ui or Yoshi or Yoshiki or Yoshimi)

愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
愛 (canonical)
Azumi (romanization)
Āi (romanization)
Aika (romanization)
Aisu (romanization)
Aki (romanization)
Ako (romanization)
Amika (romanization)
Aoi (romanization)
Arisa (romanization)
Aya (romanization)
Ayu (romanization)
Chigiri (romanization)
Chika (romanization)
Chikashi (romanization)
Erina (romanization)
Hāto (romanization)
Hikari (romanization)
Ito (romanization)
Itoshi (romanization)
Itsumi (romanization)
Izumi (romanization)
Kana (romanization)
Kanae (romanization)
Kanasa (romanization)
Kizuna (romanization)
Kokoro (romanization)
Konomu (romanization)
Madoka (romanization)
Manabu (romanization)
Manami (romanization)
Mezuru (romanization)
Mego (romanization)
Megu (romanization)
Megumi (romanization)
Megumu (romanization)
Mei (romanization)
Naru (romanization)
Naruko (romanization)
Nozomi (romanization)
Rabu (romanization)
Rui (romanization)
Sara (romanization)
Saran (romanization)
Tsugumi (romanization)
Tsukumi (romanization)
Ui (romanization)
Yoshi (romanization)
Yoshiki (romanization)
Yoshimi (romanization)
ちかしいとしかなえかなさめぐみめぐむなるこさらんよしきよしみ (hiragana)

Used as nanori in various names. 愛 is a very common element in many names.


青

青 (canonical)
Ao (romanization)
Awo (romanization)
あを (hiragana historical)

/sawo/ (uncertain, may be compound as opposed to root) → /awo/ → /ao/
From Old Japanese, ultimately from Proto-Japonic *awo.
Appears as the latter part in older compounds with an -s- infix or prefix. It is unclear if this leading /s/ is indicative of an earlier form (sawo), or if this was an addition for euphony to avoid vowel clusters, or for other reasons. This /s/ is also seen in 雨(あめ) (ame, “rain”, becoming same in old compounds) and 稲(いね) (ine, “rice”, becoming shine in old compounds).
Given that this /s/ only ever appears interstitially, and given the semantics, this /s/ may be cognate with Korean interfix -ㅅ- (-s-) used to mark possession; compare German -s-.


明日

Daijisen
Early Middle Japanese
Early Modern Japanese
Late Middle Japanese
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
ja:松村明

Shift in meaning from 朝 (ashita, “next morning”), itself cognate with 朝 (asa, “morning”).
The kanji spelling is from Chinese 明日 (míngrì).


明日

Early Middle Japanese
Early Modern Japanese
Kojiki
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten

From Old Japanese, first attested in the Kojiki (712 CE).
Various theories exist regarding the ultimate derivation:
* Possibly a shift from verb 明かす (akasu, “to pass”).
*: */akasu/ → */akusu/ → /asu/
* Possibly an apophonic form of or cognate with 朝 (asa, “morning”).
The kanji spelling is an orthographic borrowing from Chinese 明日 (míngrì).


明日

ja-pos

明日(ぬくい) or 明(あけ)日(ひ) or 明(みょう)日(が) or 明(ぬく)日(ひ) or 明(あけ)日(び) • (Nukui or Akehi or Myōga or Nukuhi or Akebi)

明日 (canonical)
明日 (canonical)
明日 (canonical)
明日 (canonical)
明日 (canonical)
Nukui (romanization)
Akehi (romanization)
Myōga (romanization)
Nukuhi (romanization)
Akebi (romanization)


水

水 (canonical)
Mizu (romanization)
Midu (romanization)
みづ (hiragana historical)

⟨mi₁du⟩ → */mʲidu/ → /mid͡zu/ → /mizu/
From Old Japanese. First attested in the Kojiki of 712 CE. In turn, from Proto-Japonic *mentu. Ryukyuan cognates support the existence of the first vowel having an initial mid vowel.
Possibly cognate with 瑞 (mizu, “freshness, youth”).
Possible cognate with Proto-Tungusic *mū, Jurchen 木克 (mu-ke /muke/), Manchu ᠮᡠᡴᡝ (muke), Goguryeo 買 (*me, “river; water”), Mongolian мөрөн (mörön, “river”), Korean 물 (mul, “water”).


水

/ɕuwi/ → */suwi/ → /sui/
From Middle Chinese 水 (MC sywijX).
Compare modern Mandarin 水 (shuǐ), modern Hakka 水 (súi).


米

Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
Nihon Shoki
man'yōgana

⟨ko₂me₂⟩ → */kəməj/ → /kome/
From Old Japanese. First appears in the Nihon Shoki of 720 CE, with the phonetic man'yōgana spelling 渠梅. In turn, from Proto-Japonic *kəmay.
Many theories exist regarding the ultimate derivation:
* Perhaps from 籠め (kome), the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “stem or continuative form”) of verb 籠める (komeru, “do with one's heart”), from the way rice is farmed. The accent of kome in the Heian period is , while kome- in the Heian period is .
* Possibly cognate with Proto-Vietic *kəːm (“cooked rice”), modern cơm.
* Possibly cognate with Proto-Austronesian *Semay and Old Chinese 糜 (OC *mral). However, this is extremely speculative; none of the known derivations from Proto-Austronesian *Semay develop initial /k/, nor is this shift explainable by any known mechanism within Japonic.


米

⟨yo₂nai⟩ → */jənai/ → */jəne/ → /jone/
First attested in the Wamyō Ruijushō (938 CE).
From Proto-Japonic *yənəi; possibly related to 稲 (ine, “rice plant”).
The colloquial sense is derived from the components of the 米 kanji: 八 (hachi, “eight”) + 十 (jū, “ten”) + 八 (hachi, “eight”).


零

From Middle Chinese 零 (MC leng) with an original meaning of a small rainfall. The character was later repurposed in 1248 by mathematician Li Ye as a placeholder, extending from its a little bit (of rain) meaning to indicate a bit more remaining. In Li Ye's notation, a number like 302 would be represented as 三百零二 (èr), literally three hundred and remaining two, with the 零 character used as a means of skipping the tens place, by indicating zero tens. It would thus implicitly take on the meaning of zero.

lang

「算木」を超えた男: もう一つの近代数学の誕生と関孝和

「算木」を超えた男: もう一つの近代数学の誕生と関孝和


リトアニア

Lithuania (a country in northeastern Europe)


漢

From Middle Chinese 漢 (MC xanH), in reference to the Han Chinese ethnic group.
The sense of man arose from usage in Chinese to differentiate between the “civilized” people of the Han Chinese ethnicity versus other ethnic groups.

the name of China during the Han dynasty (206 BCE – 220 CE)

the 西漢 (Saikan, “Western Han”) or 前漢 (Zenkan, “Former Han”) (206 BCE – 9 CE)

the 東漢 (Tōkan, “Eastern Han”) or 後漢 (Gokan, “Later Han”) (25–220 CE)

name of various Chinese dynasties
the 蜀漢 (Shokkan, “Shu Han”) (221–263)

name of various Chinese dynasties
the 成漢 (Seikan, “Cheng Han”) (304–347)

the 南漢 (Nankan, “Southern Han”) (917–971)

name of various Chinese dynasties
the 後漢 (Kōkan, “Later Han”) (947–951)

the 北漢 (Hokukan, “Northern Han”) (951–979)

the Han River, a tributary of the Yangtze

(by extension from the "river" sense) the Milky Way

alternative name for 漢中 (Kanchū, “Hanzhong”)


漢

Daijisen
Edo period
Gaya confederacy
Kyūjitai
Shinjitai
ja:松村明

From Old Japanese.
Originally referred to the Gaya confederacy, an independent state in the south of the Korean peninsula in the years 42–562 CE. Over time, the meaning extended to refer in general to the Korean peninsula and China, expanding further just before and during the Edo period to refer to foreign lands in general.

(archaic) China, especially during the Han dynasty


漢

Daijirin Daijisen Kyūjitai Shinjitai ja:松村明

From Old Japanese, in reference to clans purportedly originating from China. Appears to be cognate with 文 / 紋 / 綾 / 絢 (aya, “a pattern or design; a pattern of diagonally interweaving lines; twill; how something fits together, the reason or background of a thing; skillful expression in color or words; melody, tune”), possibly in distant reference to technologies and cultural practices brought to Japan by the original Chinese immigrants.

short for 漢氏 (Aya uji): name of one of two ancient clans, purportedly descendants from Han Chinese, and notable historically for major achievements in fields including literature, diplomacy, and finance, among others


氷

氷 (canonical)
Kōri (romanization)
Kofori (romanization)
こほり (hiragana historical)

⟨ko₂pori⟩ → */kəpori/ → /koɸori/ → /kowori/ → /koːri/
From Old Japanese.
The 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “stem or continuative form”) of verb 凍る (kōru, “to freeze”).


ドラキュラ

[do̞ɾa̠kʲɨɾa̠]


姫

⟨pi₁ me₁⟩ → */pʲimʲe/ → /fime/ → /hime/
From Old Japanese.
Originally a compound of 日 (hi, “sun”, a prefix or appellation used in reference to the imperial family) + 女 (me, “female person: girl, woman”).


今

Early Middle Japanese
Early Modern Japanese
Kojiki
Late Middle Japanese
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
Old Japanese language

From Old Japanese. First attested in the Kojiki of 712 CE. From Proto-Japonic *ima. Frellesvig suggests a compound of reconstructed proximal demonstrative *i (compare Middle Korean 이 (i, “this”)) + ma (corresponding to modern 間(ま) (ma, “space”).


一

一 (canonical)
Ichi (romanization)
壱 (alternative)
弌 (alternative)
壹 (alternative)
𪩩 (alternative)

→ Okinawan: 一 (ichi)

Japanese_pitch_accent#Noun ending in 特殊拍+の

/itɨ/ → /it͡sɨ/ → /it͡ɕɨ/
From Middle Chinese 一 (ʔiɪt̚).
Compare modern Hokkien 一 (it).


一

一 (canonical)
Itsu (romanization)
壱 (alternative)
弌 (alternative)

/itʉ/ → /it͡sʉ/ → /it͡su/
From Middle Chinese 一 (ʔiɪt̚).


一

From 始め (hajime, “beginning, first”), the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “stem or continuative form”) of verb 始める (hajimeru, “to begin something”).


千

a surname, especially from the line of tea ceremony masters


乙

Originally from Middle Chinese 乙 (MC 'it), arising from the proper noun sense. Appears in texts from at least 833 CE.


乙

Compound of 木 (Ki, “Wood”, one of the Five Elements) + の (no, attributive marker) + 弟 (oto, “younger brother”).


USA

[jɯ̟ː e̞sɨ e̞ː]

initialism of the United States of America: a country in North America: USA


アルゴス

[a̠ɾɯ̟ɡo̞sɨ]

ja:アルゴス (曖昧さ回避)


丁

火 (hi, “fire”, one of the Five Elements) + の (no, attributive marker) + 弟 (oto, “younger brother”)


メイン

メイン州


神

Ainu language
Japanese language
Korean language
Kyūjitai
Old Japanese language
Proto-Japonic language
Shinjitai

⟨kami₂⟩ → */kamɨ/ → /kami/
From Old Japanese, ultimately from Proto-Japonic *kamui.
Not related to 上 (kami₁ → kami, “top, upper”) or 髪 (kami, “hair”).
Often appears in compounds as kamu- or kan-, indicating that kami is an unbound form deriving from */kamui/. Such apophony has occurred in other Japanese terms, such as 目 (me, ma-, “eye”) or 酒 (sake, saka-, “sake, liquor”). See also WT:AJPX#Standalone forms and combining forms.
Compare Korean 검 (geom, “god, spirit”) and Ainu カムイ (kamuy, “god”).


東京

ja-pos

東(とう)京(きょう) • (Tōkyō) ^(←とうきやう (Toukyau)?)

東京 (canonical)
Tōkyō (romanization)
Toukyau (romanization)
とうきやう (hiragana historical)

→ Dutch: Tokio

→ English: Tokyo

→ Finnish: Tokio

→ French: Tokyo

→ German: Tokio

→ Khmer: តូក្យូ (toukyou)

→ Korean: 동경 (Donggyeong)

→ Norwegian Bokmål: Tokyo

→ Portuguese: Tóquio

→ Russian: То́кио (Tókio)

→ Spanish: Tokio

→ Thai: โตเกียว (dtoo-giao)

→ Vietnamese: Đông Kinh

/tou kʲau/ → /toːkʲɔː/ → /toːkʲoː/
Compound of Middle Chinese-derived elements 東 (tō, “east, eastern”) + 京 (kyō, “capital”).
The city of Tokyo was renamed from 江戸 (Edo) in 1868 after Emperor Meiji moved the capital from Kyoto.

com

昨日、東京は曇りでしたか。

Tokyo (a prefecture, the capital city of Japan, consisting of 23 special wards)

short for 東京都 (Tōkyō-to): the capital prefecture of Japan

東京都

short for 東京駅 (Tōkyō-eki): Tokyo Station

(historical) short for 東京府 (Tōkyō-fu): the historical Tokyo Prefecture from 1868–1943


東京

From Middle Chinese 東京 (MC tuwng kjaeng).
The alternate pronunciation for Tokyo appears to be prevalent in the early- to mid-Meiji period.

(historical) the capital of 東漢 (Tōkan, “Eastern Han”) or 後漢 (Gokan, “Later Han”), corresponds to modern Luoyang

(historical) the capital of 北宋 (Hokusō, “Northern Song”), corresponds to modern Kaifeng

(historical) the eastern capital of the Jurchen Jin dynasty, corresponds to modern Liaoyang

(historical) the capital of Yongwon province in Balhae during the Tang dynasty

(historical) dated spelling of とうきょう (Tōkyō, “Tokyo”)


東京

Borrowing from Vietnamese 東京 (Đông Kinh, literally “Eastern capital”), a historical name for Hanoi.

bor

(historical) Tonkin (northern region of Vietnam)


京都

京都 (canonical)
Kyōto (romanization)
Kyauto (romanization)
きやうと (hiragana historical)

→ English: Kyoto

→ Korean: 교토 (Gyoto)

→ Portuguese: Kyoto

→ Russian: Кио́то m (Kióto)

→ Vietnamese: Kinh Đô

Early Modern Japanese
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten

/kjauto/ → /kjɔːto/ → /kjoːto/
From Middle Chinese 京都 (kjaeng tu, literally “capital city”).

京都五山

京都五山 きょうとござん

京都御所

京都御所 きょうとごしょ

京都所司代

京都所司 きょうとしょし

京都代官

京都代官 きょうとだいかん

京都盆地

京都盆地 きょうとぼんち

京都守護

京都守護 きょうとしゅご

short for 京都府 (Kyōto-fu): Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture (a prefecture of Japan)

京都府

short for 京都市 (Kyōto-shi): Kyoto (the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture, Japan)


七

From Old Japanese 七 (nana), ultimately from Proto-Japonic *nana.


萬

萬 (canonical)
Yorozu (romanization)
Yorodu (romanization)
よろづ (hiragana historical)

⟨yo₂ro₂du⟩ → */jərədu/ → /jorod͡zu/ → /jorozu/
From Old Japanese, first attested in the Kojiki (712 CE). See 万 for more senses.


萬

From Middle Chinese 萬 (MC mjonH). See 万 for more senses.


萬

Likely a shift from ban above. See 万 for more senses.


中国

From Middle Chinese 中國 (MC trjuwng kwok, literally “central country”). Compare modern Cantonese 中國 /中国 (zung¹ gwok³). Attested from at least the 12th century.

ltc-l

c. 1120, Konjaku monogatari shū [Tales of Times Now Past], scroll 6:

Judging from the appearance [of the statue], it is not unlike those in China, though the face resembles the northern nations.

造り奉れる体を見るに、中國には不似ず、面[めう]胡国に似たり。

Tsukuri matsureru sugata o miru ni, Chūgoku ni wa fu-nizu, men[meu] kokoku ni nitari.

(historical or contemporary) any of several kingdoms, empires, or states of the Chinese people

1998 November 30 [1990 November 25], Fujiko F. Fujio, のび太(た)とアニマル惑星(プラネット) [Nobita and the Animal Planet] (大長編ドラえもん; 10), 22nd edition, volume 10 (fiction), Tokyo: Shogakukan, →ISBN, page 27:

アメリカとか中国とかいろいろあるじゃない。

Amerika toka Chūgoku toka iroiro aru ja nai.

You know, countries. There are a bunch of them like America and China.

アメリカとか中国とかいろいろあるじゃない。

中華人民共和国 中華人民共和国#Japanese

People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China

(especially in contemporary usage) short for 中華人民共和国 (Chūka Jinmin Kyōwakoku), the People's Republic of China


中国

[t͡ɕɨːɡo̞kɯ̟]

From Middle Chinese 中國 (MC trjuwng kwok).
Analyzable as a compound of 中 (chū, “center, middle”) + 国 (koku, “province”). The koku changes to goku as an instance of rendaku (連濁).

com

short for 中国地方 (Chūgoku chihō): the Chūgoku region of Japan


中国

From 中 (naka, “center, middle”) + 国 (kuni, “country”).


心

心 (canonical)
心 (canonical)
Kokoro (romanization)

⟨ko₂ko₂ro₂⟩ → */kəkərə/ → /kokoro/
From Old Japanese 心 (ko₂ko₂ro₂), ultimately from Proto-Japonic *kəkərə. First attested in the Kojiki of 712 CE.
Compare Okinawan 心 (kukuru).


心

/simʉ/ → */ɕimʉ/ → /ɕiɴ/
From Middle Chinese 心 (MC sim).
The Buddhist sense is a translation of Pali and Sanskrit चित्त (citta).

(Chinese astronomy) the Heart constellation, one of the Twenty-Eight Mansions


曜

曜 (canonical)
Yō (romanization)
Eu (romanization)
えう (hiragana historical)

/jieu/ → /jeu/ → /jəː/ → /joː/
From Middle Chinese 曜 (MC yewH).


円

円 (canonical)
En (romanization)
Wen (romanization)
ゑん (hiragana historical)

/wen/ → /eɴ/
From Middle Chinese 圓 (MC zjwen|hjwen), with the original sense of "circle, roundness".
The yen sense came much later in the Meiji period, from Chinese 圓 /圆 (yuán), itself from 銀圓 /银圆 (yínyuán, “round silver object(s), especially a piece of eight”). Compare Chinese 元 (yuán, “yuan”) and Korean 원 (won, “Korean won”). Doublet of 元 (gen, “yuan (Chinese currency)”), ユアン (yuan, “yuan (Chinese currency)”), and ウォン (won, “won (Korean currency)”).
The yen became the official currency of Japan in 1871, succeeding the 両 (ryō) and the 文 (mon).


円

/maro/ → /maru/
Sound shift from maro above.


円

ja-pos

円(のどか) or 円(つぶら) or 円(まどか) or 円(まろか) or 円(みつ) or 円(めぐる) • (Nodoka or Tsubura or Madoka or Maroka or Mitsu or Meguru)

円 (canonical)
円 (canonical)
円 (canonical)
円 (canonical)
円 (canonical)
円 (canonical)
Nodoka (romanization)
Tsubura (romanization)
Madoka (romanization)
Maroka (romanization)
Mitsu (romanization)
Meguru (romanization)


円

円(つぶら) or 円(つむら) or 円(まどか) or 円(まとめ) • (Tsubura or Tsumura or Madoka or Matome)

円 (canonical)
円 (canonical)
円 (canonical)
円 (canonical)
Tsubura (romanization)
Tsumura (romanization)
Madoka (romanization)
Matome (romanization)

円谷 (tsumuraya)


南

南 (canonical)
南 (canonical)
Minami (romanization)

⟨mi₁nami₁⟩ → */mʲinamʲɨ/ → /minami/
From Old Japanese.

(historical) the red-light district in modern-day Shinagawa Ward, Tokyo (as it was located south of Edo Castle)

the name of a ward in various cities throughout Japan, especially a former ward in the city of Osaka which is now part of Chūō Ward


南

/minami/ → /minːami/
Appears in The Pillow Book, completed in 1002.
Alteration of minami.

(historical, archaic) the red-light district in modern-day Shinagawa Ward, Tokyo


南

/namʉ/ → /naɴ/
From Middle Chinese 南 (MC nom).


東

/ɸiŋɡaɕi/ → /ɸiɡaɕi/ → /hiɡaɕi/
Sound shift from hingashi (see Etymology 2 below).
Now the standard word for east.

a historical red-light district in Edo located east of Edo Castle, today in Fukagawa, Kōtō, Tokyo prefecture

(Buddhism) short for 東本願寺 (Higashi Hongan-ji): a Buddhist temple in Shimogyō, Kyoto, Japan

東本願寺

Higashi (multiple places throughout Japan, especially referring to a ward in Okayama, Kumamoto, Sakai, Sapporo, Nagoya, Niigata, Hamamatsu, Hiroshima and Fukuoka)

東音高

Ototaka Higashi, pediatrician known for Chédiak–Higashi syndrome


東

東 (canonical)
Azuma (romanization)
Aduma (romanization)
あづま (hiragana historical)

⟨aduma⟩ → /ad͡zuma/ → /azuma/
From Old Japanese, itself of unknown derivation.


東

東(とう) • (Tō)

short for 関東 (Kantō): the Kantō region of Japan

short for 東国 (Tōgoku): a historical administrative division of Japan, corresponding to the modern Kantō and Tōkai regions


東

From Mandarin 東 /东 (dōng).
Compare Wu 東 /东 (ton), Hakka 東 /东 (tûng), Min Nan 東 /东 (tong).


東

Nominalization of the stem of adjective 明らか (akiraka, “clear”).


東

Nominalization of verb 上る, 登る (noboru, “to ascend, rise”).


東

Nominalization of the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “stem or continuative form”) of verb 始める (hajimeru, “to begin, start”).


北

北 (canonical)
北 (canonical)
Kita (romanization)

Attributed to Old Japanese, although the exact phonetics are not clear, as the term is not cited in phonetic man'yōgana.
Ultimate derivation unknown.

Kita (one of 23 special wards in Tokyo prefecture, Japan)

(historical) the red-light district north of Edo Castle

北一輝


森

From Old Japanese, first attested in the Man'yōshū (c. 759 CE).
Probably cognate with 盛り (mori, “heap, pile”), the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “continuative or stem form”) of verb 盛る (moru, “to heap up, to build up into a significant amount”), from the way a forest can look like a heap or mound from a distance.

Mori (a town in Hokkaido Prefecture, Japan)

Mori (a town in Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan)


火

火 (canonical)
Ka (romanization)
Kwa (romanization)
くわ (hiragana historical)

/kwa/ → /ka/
From Middle Chinese 火 (MC xwaX).


丈

丈 (canonical)
Jō (romanization)
Dyau (romanization)
ぢやう (hiragana historical)


上

上 (canonical)
Ue (romanization)
Ufe (romanization)
うへ (hiragana historical)

⟨upe₂⟩ → /*upai̯/ → /upe/ → /ufe/ → /uwe/ → /ue/
From Old Japanese, from Proto-Japonic *upay.
Unbound apophonic form of uwa, ancient upa (see below).


上

上 (canonical)
Uwa (romanization)
Ufa (romanization)
うは (hiragana historical)

/upa/ → /ufa/ → /uwa/
From Old Japanese. The combining form of ue, ancient upe (see above).


上

⟨kami₁⟩ → */kamʲi/ → /kami/
From Old Japanese. Already apparent in ancient texts such as the Kojiki (c. 712 CE) and the Man'yōshū (c. 759 CE).
Distinct from 神 (⟨kami₂⟩ → kami, “Shinto deity”).


上

/kami/ → /kamʉ/ → /kaɴ/
Contraction of Old Japanese ⟨kami₁⟩. Spelled in ancient works as かむ (kamu) prior to the development of the ん (n) kana.


上

上 (canonical)
Jō (romanization)
Zyau (romanization)
じやう (hiragana historical)

/d͡ʑɨau/ → /d͡ʑɔː/ → /d͡ʑoː/
From Middle Chinese 上 (MC dzyangX|dzyangH).


丑

the Ox, the second of the twelve Earthly Branches


丑

丑 (canonical)
Chū (romanization)
Tiu (romanization)
ちう (hiragana historical)


丕

An orthographic borrowing of the Chinese surname 丕, Pi


世

From Middle Chinese 世 (MC syejH). The kan'on reading, so likely a later borrowing.


串

/kusi/ → /kuɕi/
From Old Japanese. Appears in the Nihon Shoki, finished CE 720.
Cognate with 櫛 (kushi, “comb”).


丸

⟨maro₂⟩ → */marə/ → /maru/
Shift from Old Japanese 丸 (maro, see below).


丸

⟨maro₂⟩ → */marə/ → /maro/
From Old Japanese. Appears to be the older form.


丸

丸 (canonical)
Gwan (romanization)
ぐわん (hiragana historical)

/ɡwan/ → /ɡan/
From Middle Chinese 丸 (MC hwan).


丹

From Middle Chinese 丹 (MC tan).
Used in the Man'yōshū (c. 759 CE) as 借音 (shakuon) kana for ⟨ta⟩.


主

主 (canonical)
Shu (romanization)
Syu (romanization)
しゆ (hiragana historical)

From Middle Chinese 主 (MC tsyuX).
The kan'on pronunciation, so likely a later borrowing.

主の兄弟ヤコブ


乾

乾 (canonical)
Inui (romanization)
i'nwi (romanization)
いぬゐ (hiragana historical)

From 戌(いぬ) (inu, “10 o'clock direction”) + 亥(い) (i, “11 o'clock direction”).
Orthographic borrowing from Chinese 乾 /干 (“northwest”, Etymology 2).


井

(Chinese astronomy) Well (Chinese constellation)


亘

[β̞a̠ta̠ɾɯ̟]

Nominalization of the verb 亘る (wataru, “to extend over, to spread over”).


亘

[β̞a̠ta̠ɾʲi]

From the 連(れん)用(よう)形(けい) (ren'yōkei, “stem or continuative form”) of the verb 亘(わた)る (wataru, “to extend over, to spread over”).


亥

亥 (canonical)
I (romanization)
Wi (romanization)
ゐ (hiragana historical)

the Boar, the twelfth of the twelve Earthly Branches


亮

亮 (canonical)
Ryō (romanization)
Ryau (romanization)
りやう (hiragana historical)


仁

ja-pos

仁(ひとし) or 仁(じん) or 仁(まさし) • (Hitoshi or Jin or Masashi)

仁 (canonical)
仁 (canonical)
仁 (canonical)
Hitoshi (romanization)
Jin (romanization)
Masashi (romanization)


仏

Baekje
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
Nihon Shoki

*⟨poto₂ke₂⟩ → */pətəkəi̯/ → /ɸotoke/ → /hotoke/
From Old Japanese, most likely from Proto-Koreanic *Pwutukye, hence related to modern Korean 부처 (Bucheo), Manchu ᡶᡠᠴᡳᡥᡳ (fucihi); see the Proto-Korean entry for more. The word was presumably disseminated by the Baekje people of southwestern Korea, who first introduced Buddhism to Japan. The first two syllables are ultimately from Sanskrit बुद्ध (buddhá), via Middle Chinese 佛陀 (MC bjut da) or some similar Sinitic form. Thomas Pellard speculates that the final element is an ancient Koreanic word for "king; lord".
The more traditional explanation still given in Japanese dictionaries is that the final ke element might be the Chinese-derived suffix 気 (ke, “spirit”), but a Koreanic explanation is more plausible.
First attested in the Nihon Shoki of 720 CE.

(Buddhism) the Sakyamuni Buddha, Nepalese spiritual and philosophical teacher and founder of Buddhism: Siddhartha Gautama

(Buddhism) any of the other buddhas named in Buddhist scriptures


仏

From Middle Chinese 佛 (MC bjut), shortened from 佛陀 (MC bjut da), itself a transliteration of Sanskrit बुद्ध (buddha).


令

From Middle Chinese 令 (MC ljeng), 令 (MC ljengH), or 令 (MC lengH).


令

令 (canonical)
Ryō (romanization)
Ryau (romanization)
りやう (hiragana historical)

/rjau/ → /rjɔː/ → /rjoː/
From Middle Chinese 令 (MC ljeng), 令 (MC ljengH), or 令 (MC lengH).


伸

伸 (canonical)
伸 (canonical)
Noburu (romanization)


但

但 (canonical)
但 (canonical)
Tadashi (romanization)


佑

佑(ゆう) • (Yū)


侑

侑(ゆう) • (Yū)


倭

From Middle Chinese 倭 (MC 'wa). Various theories suggest that 倭 was influenced by Old Japanese 我 (wa, “I, me”) or referring to the practice of bowing among the ancient Japanese.


優

優 (canonical)
Yū (romanization)
Iu (romanization)
いう (hiragana historical)


充

充 (canonical)
充 (canonical)
Mitsuru (romanization)
Takashi (romanization)


光

⟨pi₁kari⟩ → */pʲikari/ → /ɸikari/ → /hikari/
From Old Japanese.
Nominalization of the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “continuative or stem form”) of verb 光る (hikaru, “to shine, to glitter, to gleam”).

Hikari (a city in Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan)

one of the bullet train services running on the 東海道 (Tōkaido) or 山陽 (San'yō) shinkansen


光

Nominalization of the verb 光る (hikaru, “to shine, to glitter, to gleam”).


光

光 (canonical)
Kō (romanization)
Kwau (romanization)
くわう (hiragana historical)

/kʷau/ → /kʷɔː/ → /kɔː/ → /koː/
From Middle Chinese 光 (MC kwang).
Compare modern Mandarin 光 (guāng), Hakka 光 (kông), and Min Nan 光 (kong).


冀

(historical) short for 冀州 (Kishū): Ji Province


冠

[kã̠mːɯ̟ɾʲi]

[kã̠mbɯ̟ɾʲi]

The modern spelling. A shift from kōburi above, historical kauburi. Also encountered is kanburi.


冰

冰(ひょう) • (Hyō)

An orthographic borrowing of the Chinese surname 冰 (bīng), Bing


冽

冽 (canonical)
冽 (canonical)
Tadashi (romanization)


凪

A 国字 (kokuji, “Japanese-coined character”). 𠘨 (the outer component of 風 "wind") + 止 (“to stop”).


出

連(れん)用(よう)形(けい) (ren'yōkei, “stem or continuative form”) of the verb 出(い)づ (izu).


刁

刀 銘九州日向住国広作 天正十八年庚刁弐月吉日平顕長（山姥切）

(obsolete, used in 15-17 century) Alternative form of 寅 (the third of the twelve Earthly Branches)


初

Nominalization of 始め (hajime, “beginning, first”).


剛

ja-pos

剛(ごう) • (Gō)


剣

/kem/ → /kemʉ/ → /keɴ/
From Middle Chinese 劍 (MC kjaemH).
Compare modern Mandarin 劍 /剑 (jiàn).


剣

[t͡sɨɾɯ̟ɡʲi]

⟨turuki₁⟩ → */turukʲi/ → /t͡suruɡi/
Shift from Old Japanese turuki, itself of unknown derivation.
A surface analysis suggests that this might be a compound of 釣る, 吊る (tsuru, “to hang, as at one's side”) + ki, but there is no clear etymon for the ki portion. One possibility would be 牙 (“fang”), read as kiba in modern Japanese but also appearing as ki in Old Japanese contexts. Such usage might parallel the combined tooth and blade meanings of the term ha, spelled more specifically as 歯 (“tooth”) and 刃 (“blade”), with these two senses listed as cognates in Japanese dictionaries.
More tentative suggestions have been connections to Austronesian, such as Tagalog suligi (“dart, short spear”) , but such possibilities seem only speculative at present.


剣

Unknown. Japanese names often apply readings from other words to allude to different meanings.


創

創 (canonical)
Sō (romanization)
Sau (romanization)
さう (hiragana historical)

/t͡ʃau/ → /sau/ → /sɔː/ → /soː/
From Middle Chinese 創 (MC tsrhjang|tsrhjangH).


創

Nominalization of verb 創る (tsukuru, “to create (new things)”).


創

Nominalization of the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “stem or continuative form”) of verb 始める (hajimeru, “to begin, start”).


劉

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

(Can we date this quote?), 中華若木詩抄巻之上, archived from the original on 2021-12-12, page 3a:

蜀ノ刘備


力

From Old Japanese, ultimately from Proto-Japonic *tikara. Compound of Old Japanese elements 霊 (chi, “power, life force, essence”) + 柄 (kara, “source, origin”).


努

Nominalization of the classical Japanese verb 努む (tsutomu) (modern 努める (tsutomeru, “to work, to toil”)).


午

the Horse, the seventh of the twelve Earthly Branches


卓

卓 (canonical)
Takashi (romanization)
卓 (canonical)
Suguru (romanization)


卯

the Rabbit, the fourth of the twelve Earthly Branches


卯

卯 (canonical)
Bō (romanization)
Bau (romanization)
ばう (hiragana historical)


原

From Old Japanese. Found in the Man'yōshū, finished some time after 759 CE. Compare Middle Korean ᄇᆞᆯ〮 (pól, “field, plain”), whence modern 벌 (beol).


参

/ɕimʉ/ → /ɕiɴ/
The “Three Stars mansion” and “carrot, ginseng” senses are from Middle Chinese 參 (MC srim).
The “jagged, uneven” affix is from Middle Chinese 參 (MC tsrhim).

(Chinese astronomy) the Three Stars constellation, one of the Twenty-Eight Mansions


参

/ɕamʉ/ → /samʉ/ → /saɴ/
From Middle Chinese 參 (MC tshom).

(Chinese astronomy, rare) the Three Stars constellation, one of the Twenty-Eight Mansions


友

友 (canonical)
Yū (romanization)
Iu (romanization)
いう (hiragana historical)


向

向 (canonical)
Mukai (romanization)
Mukafi (romanization)
むかひ (hiragana historical)


呂

An orthographic borrowing of the Chinese surname 呂 /吕 (lǚ), Lu


呉

From Middle Chinese 吳 (MC ngu), the name of a state. Compare modern Mandarin 吳／吴 (Wú).

呉音

a kind of kanji reading, indicating an older borrowing from Chinese

Japanese reading of the Chinese surname Wu.


呉

Daijirin
Emperor Yang of Sui
Japanese missions to Sui China
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
Nihon Shoki
Prince Shōtoku

Likely from the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “continuative or stem form”) of verb 暮れる (kureru, “to set (said of the sun or moon), to get dark”), from the way that China lies to the west of Japan, in the direction of the setting sun. This may be related to the famous letter from Prince Shōtoku to Emperor Yang of Sui sent via the Japanese mission to Sui China in 607, wherein we see the first mention of Japan as the Land of the Rising Sun, and a description of China as Land of the Setting Sun:
* 日出處天子致書日沒處天子無恙云云 /日出处天子致书日没处天子无恙云云
: 日出處 /日出处 (literally “sun + emerge + place”) here refers to Japan, while 日沒處 /日没处 (literally “sun + sink + place”) refers to China.
In textual Japanese, the term Kure originally referred more specifically to the ancient State of Wu (roughly analogous with the modern Jiangnan region), and later shifted to refer to China as a whole.
First cited to the Nihon Shoki of 720.

呉楽

gigaku, an extinct form of masked drama performance originally imported from China

More commonly found in compounds in modern Japanese.

Kure (a city in Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan)


周

周 (canonical)
Shū (romanization)
Siu (romanization)
しう (hiragana historical)


周

西周


和

See Etymology 1.
In modern Japanese, the Yamato reading is more commonly spelled 大和.


哲

ja-pos

哲(さとし) or 哲(てつ) or 哲(あきら) or 哲(さとる) • (Satoshi or Tetsu or Akira or Satoru)

哲 (canonical)
哲 (canonical)
哲 (canonical)
哲 (canonical)
Satoshi (romanization)
Tetsu (romanization)
Akira (romanization)
Satoru (romanization)


唐

唐 (canonical)
Tō (romanization)
たう (hiragana historical)

/tau/ → /tɔː/ → /toː/
From Middle Chinese 唐 (MC dang).

唐人

a Chinese person; a foreigner from China

(historical) name of various Chinese dynasties:

name of various Chinese dynasties:
the Tang dynasty (618–907 CE)

the 後唐 (Kōtō, “Later Tang”) (923–937 CE)

the 南唐 (Nantō, “Southern Tang”) (937–976 CE)


唐

From 伽羅, a proper name from the ancient Korean Peninsula.
Originally meant "China" during the Tang dynasty and "elements imported from China", then later expanded to mean "foreign lands in general" and "elements imported from foreign lands".

(formal, dated) the name of China during the Tang dynasty (618–907 CE).

唐人

a Chinese or Korean person; a foreigner from China or Korea

迦羅

the Gaya confederacy; Kara, original derivation


唯

/juwi/ → /jui/
From Middle Chinese 唯 (MC ywij).


園

園 (canonical)
En (romanization)
Wen (romanization)
ゑん (hiragana historical)

/wen/ → /eɴ/
From Middle Chinese 園 (MC hjwon).


園

⟨so₂no₂⟩ → */sənə/ → /sono/
From Old Japanese.


土

Short form of the ateji spelling 土耳古(トルコ) (Toruko).


垰

A 国字 (kokuji, “Japanese-coined character”).
Compare other kokuji 峠(とうげ) (tōge), 裃(かみしも) (kamishimo).


堀

The 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “continuative or stem form”) of verb 掘る (horu, “to dig”).


堺

From 境(さかい) (sakai, “boundary, border”).

Sakai (a city in Osaka Prefecture, Japan)


塔

[a̠ɾa̠ɾa̠ɡʲi]

First appears in the Engishiki compilation of laws created in the early 900s, spelled phonetically in kanji as 阿良良伎. Spelled as 蘭, araragi literally means “wild onion” and refers to the wild rocambole, possibly hardneck garlic, notable for its tall green stalk sticking straight up. Used as a euphemism for 塔 (tafu at the time), as that word's Buddhist connotations were viewed as taboo in contexts having to do with the religious center of Itsuki no Miya (斎宮, also known as Saikū).

(tarot) The Tower, the sixteenth trump or major arcana card in most traditional Tarot decks

short for 塔舞 (Araragimai): the title of a piece of bugaku Japanese court dance


境

境 (canonical)
Sakai (romanization)
Sakafi (romanization)
さかひ (hiragana historical)

/sakapi/ → /sakaɸi/ → /sakahi/ → /sakai/
The 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “continuative or stem form”) of obsolete verb 境う (sakau, “to divide, to form a boundary between things”).
Some sources further derive the verb as Old Japanese element 境 (saka, “division, border, boundary”) + auxiliary verb ふ (fu) indicating repetition or ongoing state. However, given the semantics, this could also be analyzed as the repetitive or ongoing aspect of Old Japanese-derived verb saku with an underlying meaning of “to split apart, to separate, to put distance between”, spelled variously as 割(さ)く, 裂(さ)く, 離(さ)く, or 放(さ)く, and cognate with 咲(さ)く (saku, “to bloom”, from the idea of the blooms splitting open), 栄(さか)える (sakaeru, “to prosper”, extended from the bloom sense), and 盛(さか)る (sakaru, “to be in prime condition, to prosper, to flourish”).


壬

the ninth of the ten heavenly stems; something I


壬

壬 (canonical)
Mizunoe (romanization)
Midunoe (romanization)
みづのえ (hiragana historical)

水 (Mizu, “Water”, one of the Five Elements) + の (no, attributive marker) + 兄 (e, “elder brother”)


壮

壮 (canonical)
Sō (romanization)
Sau (romanization)
さう (hiragana historical)


壮

(The following entry does not have a page created for it yet: 盛ん.)


夏

/natu/ → /nat͡su/
From Old Japanese, from Proto-Japonic *natu.


夏

From Middle Chinese 夏 (MC haeX).
The kan'on reading, so likely a later borrowing.

the Xia dynasty (first dynasty of China)

short for 大夏 (Daika): Xia, one of the Sixteen Kingdoms

大夏

short for 西夏 (Seika): Western Xia, an empire during the Song dynasty


夜

⟨yo₁ru⟩ → */jʷoru/ → /joru/
From Old Japanese, from Proto-Japonic *yoru.
Derived from yo below, suffixed with an element ru of unclear meaning. Compare 日 (hi, “day”) → 昼 (hiru, “daytime”), which seems to use this same ru element.
Found in the Man'yōshū, completed some time after 759 C.E., with the phonetic spelling 用流.
Now the most common term for night in modern Japanese.


夢

⟨i me₂⟩ → */jiməɨ/ → /jɨme/ → /jume/
Shift from Old Japanese 夢 (ime₂), itself a compound of 寝 (i, “sleep, sleeping”, obsolete) + 目 (me, “eye; sight, vision”).
Appears in texts from the 900s.


太

The Old Japanese 終止形 (shūshikei, “terminal (sentence-final) form”) of adjective 太い (futoi, “fat, thick, big”).


太

太 (canonical)
Ō (romanization)
Ofo (romanization)
おほ (hiragana historical)

Derived from the root word 大 (ō, “great, big”).


央

ja-pos

央(あたる) or 央(おう) or 央(とおる) or 央(なかば) or 央(ひさし) or 央(ひろし) or 央(よう) or 央(なか) • (Ataru or Ō or Tōru or Nakaba or Hisashi or Hiroshi or Yō or Naka)

央 (canonical)
央 (canonical)
央 (canonical)
央 (canonical)
央 (canonical)
央 (canonical)
央 (canonical)
央 (canonical)
Ataru (romanization)
Ō (romanization)
Tōru (romanization)
Nakaba (romanization)
Hisashi (romanization)
Hiroshi (romanization)
Yō (romanization)
Naka (romanization)


夷

⟨emi₁si⟩ → */emʲisɨ/ → /emisə/ → /ebisu/
Shift from Old Japanese 蝦夷 (Emishi), modern Ezo.


奥

Despite the apparent overlap with the modern goon reading of oku that is derived from Middle Chinese, this term is actually rooted in Old Japanese, appearing in the Man'yōshū collection of poetry dating to roughly 759 CE. Cognate with 沖 (oki, “the open sea, offshore”), originally in reference to “somewhere far removed, possibly out of sight”. While oki came to mean “far removed in the wide open → far off shore”, oku instead came to mean “far removed inside → inside, interior”.


女

女 (canonical)
Omina (romanization)
Womina (romanization)
をみな (hiragana historical)

⟨womi₁na⟩ → */womʲina/ → /omina/
From Old Japanese.
The initial /wo/ expressed "small, youth" and contrasted with /o/ "grown, old" (as in 嫗 (omina, “old woman”)), while the medial /mi/ is cognate with 女 (me, “female, woman”, see below). According to Frellesvig (2010), proto-Japonic /e/ became Old Japanese [je] in final position and [i] elsewhere; analogous with PJ /o/, which became OJ [wo] in final position and [u] elsewhere (though PJ /i/ and /u/ also existed, compare Old Japanese 火's two readings /po/ & /pu/ in Western & Eastern Old Japanese, respectively (Vovin, 2017)).


女

女 (canonical)
Jo (romanization)
Dyo (romanization)
ぢよ (hiragana historical)

/dɨo/ → /d͡ʑo/
From Middle Chinese 女 (MC nrjoX|nrjoH).

(Chinese astronomy) the Girl, one of the Twenty-Eight Mansions


妹

Kōjien
Nihon Shoki
Shinmura Izuru
The Tale of Heiji

Analyzed as a shortening of imōto, itself a compound 妹 (imo, “sister, close female companion”) + 人 (hito, “person”).
Appears in The Tale of Heiji, written around the mid-12th century. May be much older, as this reading is also included in kun'yomi glosses for the Nihon Shoki of 720 (although the manuscripts with the glosses themselves are not as old).


嫐

嫐 (canonical)
Uwanari (romanization)
Ufanari (romanization)
うはなり (hiragana historical)

From 後妻 (uwanari, “concubine, second wife”).


子

⟨ko₁⟩ → */kʷo/ → /ko/
From Old Japanese, attested in the Kojiki (712 CE) and the Man'yōshū (c. 759 CE), two of the oldest examples of written Japanese.
Cognate with 蚕 (ko, “silkworm”) and possibly 小 (ko, “little”, diminutive prefix).
Possibly cognate with Goguryeo 仇 (*gu), which appears in an ancient place name with an apparent meaning of child.


子

From Middle Chinese 子 (MC tsiX), also used in the Man'yōshū (c. 759 CE) as 借音 (shakuon) kana for ⟨si⟩. Compare modern Mandarin 子 (zǐ).
The goon reading of shi is likely the original borrowing:
: /t͡sɨ/ → /sɨ/ → */ɕɨ/ → /ɕi/
The tōon reading su appears later, and only shows up in certain set terms borrowed from Chinese, where it seems to serve as a kind of nominalizing suffix:
: /t͡sɨ/ → /sɨ/ → */sʉ/ → /su/

(Chinese astrology) Rat, the first of the twelve Earthly Branches


子

Contracted from 鼠 (nezumi, “mouse, rat”).

(Chinese astrology) Rat, the first of the twelve Earthly Branches:

the hours between 11:00 P.M./midnight and 1:00/2:00 A.M.

the eleventh month of the lunar calendar


学

ja-pos

学(さとる) or 学(まなぶ) or 学(まこと) • (Satoru or Manabu or Makoto)

学 (canonical)
学 (canonical)
学 (canonical)
Satoru (romanization)
Manabu (romanization)
Makoto (romanization)

From Middle Chinese 學 (MC haewk, “learning”).
The goon pronunciation, so likely the initial borrowing.


宋

宋(そう) • (Sō)

name of the state during the Zhou dynasty

Song (former Chinese dynasty):
the 劉宋 (Ryūsō), around 420-479

the 北宋 (Hokusō, “Northern Song”) and 南宋 (Nansō, “Southern Song”) dynasties, spanning around 960-1279


宗

宗 (canonical)
Sō (romanization)
そう (hiragana historical)


実

From Old Japanese. Thought to be originally a compound of 真 (sa, “_([term?])”) + 根 (ne, “root of a plant”).
First appears in the Nihon Shoki of 720 CE in sense 2.


実

実 (canonical)
実 (canonical)
Chika (romanization)
Minori (romanization)


宮

Daijirin
Daijisen
Kyōsuke Kindaichi
ja:松村明

/mi₁ya/ → /miya/
From Old Japanese. A compound of 神 or 御 (mi, “spiritual honorific”) + 屋 (ya, “house”).

compound

an old name for a region in the Atsuta area of Nagoya, Aichi prefecture, where the Atsuta Shrine is located


寅

the Tiger, the third of the twelve Earthly Branches


寧

Classical Japanese
Kyūjitai
Shinjitai
Tōkyō

Nominalization of Classical Japanese adjective 寧(やす)し (yasushi), modern 寧(やす)い (yasui, “calm, peaceful”).


寧

From the root of adjective 寧(やす)い (yasui, “calm, peaceful”).


将

将 (canonical)
Shō (romanization)
Syau (romanization)
しやう (hiragana historical)

/sɨau/ → /sʲɔː/ → /sʲoː/
The “commander”, and “general, other high-ranking officer” senses are from Middle Chinese 將 (MC tsjangH).
The “take, hold” and “from now on” affixes are from Middle Chinese 將 (MC tsjang).


将

Nominalization of verb 進む (susumu, “to advance, go”).


将

Nominalization of verb 勝る (masaru, “to excel, rival, surpass”).


将

Nominalization of classical adjective 等し (hitoshi), modern 等しい (hitoshii, “equal”).


尊

From Old Japanese.
Derived from 御 (mi-, honorific prefix) + 事 (koto, “thing, matter”).


尊

From Middle Chinese 尊 (MC tswon).
Compare modern Mandarin 尊 (zūn).


尊

Nominalization of classical adjective 高し (takashi), modern 高い (takai, “high”).


尊

Various theories exist, possibly a nominalization of verb 長ける (takeru, “to excel at”).


小

小 (canonical)
Shō (romanization)
Seu (romanization)
せう (hiragana historical)

/seu/ → /ɕeu/ → /ɕoː/
From Middle Chinese 小 (MC sjewX).
The suffix sense is a clipping of 小学校 (shōgakkō, “elementary school”).


尚

尚 (canonical)
Shō (romanization)
Syau (romanization)
しやう (hiragana historical)

a surname used by the Ryukyu royal family


尚

尚 (canonical)
Nao (romanization)
Nafo (romanization)
なほ (hiragana historical)


尚

Nominalization of classical adjective 久し (hisashi), modern 久しい (hisashii, “long time”).


尼

Clipping of アマゾン (Amazon, “Amazon.com Inc”).

clipping

2019 December 19, 闇陰ひかる@騎士団長兼任提督, Twitter:

あ、空戦アルト売ってる（´・ω・`）でも明日尼から届くから

A, kūsen-Aruto utteru (´ ω `) demo asu Ama kara todoku kara

Ah, aerial combat version of Alt is sold :( but I'll get it from Amazon tomorrow

(Internet slang, dated) Amazon (Amazon.com Inc)


山

From Old Japanese 山 (yama). First attested in the Kojiki of 712 CE.
Reconstructed as deriving in turn from Proto-Japonic *yama (“mountain; forest”).


峠

/tamuke/ → /tauɡe/ → /toːɡe/
Sound shift from 手向け (tamuke, “tribute to a person about to depart”). It is said that these offerings were "given" to them as they traveled into the afterlife, akin to a mountain.


峠

峠 (canonical)
Tōge (romanization)
Tauge (romanization)
たうげ (hiragana historical)


峠

ja-pos

峠(たお) or 峠(たおげ) or 峠(とおげ) or 峠(どうげさき) • (Tao or Taoge or Tōge or Dōgesaki)

峠 (canonical)
峠 (canonical)
峠 (canonical)
峠 (canonical)
Taoge (Tao)
Tōge (Tao)
Dōgesaki (Tao)
たおげ (hiragana)


峰

From 御(み) (mi, honorific prefix) + 峰(ね) (ne, “peak”), in reference to the 神 (kami, “god or spirit”) at the top of a mountain. Now the standard spelling for a peak.
Compare 道 (michi, “road”).


島

/sima/ → /ɕima/
From Old Japanese, ultimately from Proto-Japonic *sima.
Possibly related to Baekje 斯麻 (*syema, “island”) and Middle Korean 셤 (syem), whence modern Korean 섬 (seom, “island”).


崖

Probably from 岸 (kishi, “shore, bank (of a body of water)”).


嵐

/arasi/ → /araɕi/
From Old Japanese.
Derivation theories include:
* Compound of 荒ら (ara, “desolate, sparse”, archaic) + 風 (shi, “wind”, obsolete).
* From 荒らし (arashi, “destroyer”), the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “stem or continuative form”) of verb 荒らす (arasu, “destroy, ruin”).
* Apophonic form of 颪 (oroshi, “wind blowing down from the mountains”).


嵐

/ram/ → /ramʉ/ → /ran/
From Middle Chinese 嵐 (MC lom).


嶋

a neighborhood of Makinohara, Shizuoka Prefecture

a neighborhood of Tottori, Tottori Prefecture

a neighborhood of Iida, Nagano Prefecture

a neighborhood of Nishiwaki, Hyōgo Prefecture

a neighborhood of Kinokawa, Wakayama Prefecture


巌

巌 (canonical)
Iwao (romanization)
Ifafo (romanization)
いはほ (hiragana historical)

/ipa po/ → /ifafo/ → /iwawo/ → /iwao/
From Old Japanese. Found in the Man'yōshū finished some time after 759 CE.
Originally a compound of 岩 (ipa → iwa, “boulder; crag”) + 秀 (po → ho, “something tall and prominent”, cognate with 穂 (ho, “ear of grain”), from the sense of something prominent sticking upwards).
The character is Japanese shinjitai, simplified from 巖.

compound

cognate with <i class="Jpan mention" lang="ja">穂</i> (ho, “ear of grain”), from the sense of something prominent sticking upwards


巧

巧 (canonical)
Kō (romanization)
Kau (romanization)
かう (hiragana historical)


己

Originally a compound of 土 (tsuchi, “earth”, one of the Chinese five elements) + の (no, possessive particle) + 弟 (oto, “younger brother”).


巳

Chinese zodiac
Jōdai Tokushu Kanazukai
Kōjien
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
Shinmura Izuru
Shōsōin
ja:巳

Assumed to be an abbreviation of 蛇 (hemi, “snake”, modern reading hebi).
Philological analyses presume this was read as mi₂ in Old Japanese, as names 身麻呂 (mi₂maro₂, “a male born on the year of the Snake”) and 身売 (mi₂me₁, “a female born on the year of the Snake”) were recorded in Shōsōin documents, alongside other names born on the Chinese zodiac.

the Snake, the sixth of the twelve Earthly Branches (by extension):

a year corresponding to the year of the Snake

south-southeast: a direction pointed thirty degrees from south to east

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

Mi. Example: Minotoki (time of the Snake). A time from 8 AM to 10 AM.

Mi. ミ (巳) 例, Minotoqi (巳の時) 午前八時から十時まで.


巴

巴 (canonical)
Tomoe (romanization)
Tomowe (romanization)
ともゑ (hiragana historical)

First attested around the 12th century.
Originally a compound of 鞆 (tomo, “archer's left-wrist protector”) + 絵 (e, “picture, drawing”).
The use of the 巴 kanji is possibly for its resemblance to a big snake.

short for 巴御前 (Tomoe Gozen): 12th-century female samurai

巴御前

a 謡曲 (dōkyoku, “noh song”) based on a story from The Tale of the Heike


巴

From Middle Chinese 巴 (MC pae). The 漢音 (kan'on) reading, so likely a later borrowing.

(historical) Ba (an ancient state in eastern Sichuan)


平

⟨pi₁ra⟩ → /pʲira/ → /ɸira/ → /hira/
From Old Japanese, from Proto-Japonic *pira.


平

平 (canonical)
Taira (romanization)
Tafira (romanization)
たひら (hiragana historical)

⟨tapi₁ra⟩ → /tapʲira/ → /taɸira/ → /tawira/ → /taira/
Nominalization of adjective 平ら (taira, “flat, level”).

Chrysanthemum Throne
Chrysanthemum Throne

a surname, especially of those descended from imperial lineage ineligible for the Chrysanthemum Throne:

the 桓武平氏 (Kanmu Heishi), from Emperor Kanmu

the 仁明平氏 (Ninmyō Heishi), from Emperor Ninmyō

the 文徳平氏 (Montoku Heishi), from Emperor Montoku, and

the 光孝平氏 (Kōkō Heishi), from Emperor Kōkō

a placename, especially in Iwaki city, Fukushima Prefecture


平

平 (canonical)
Osamu (romanization)
Wosamu (romanization)
をさむ (hiragana historical)

Nominalization of classical verb おさむ (osamu), modern おさめる (osameru, multiple definitions in kanji).


平

Nominalization of classical adjective 等し (hitoshi), modern 等しい (hitoshii, “equal, same”).


平

Nominalization of classical adjective 広し (hiroshi), modern 広い (hiroi, “vast, wide”).


平

Nominalization of classical adjective 安し (yasushi), modern 安い (yasui, “peaceful, quiet”).


平

Nominalization of classical adjective 良し (yoshi), modern 良い (yoi, “good, fine”).


幸

幸 (canonical)
Kō (romanization)
Kau (romanization)
かう (hiragana historical)

/kau/ → /kɔː/ → /koː/
From Middle Chinese 幸 (hɛng^X, literally “lucky, fortunate, auspicious”). The kan'on, so a later borrowing.


広

modern 広い . (canonical)
hiroshi (romanization)
広 (canonical)
Hiroshi (romanization)


庄

ja-pos

庄(しょう) • (Shō)


庚

庚(こう) • (Kō)


庚

金 (Ka, “Metal”, one of the Five Elements) + の (no, attributive marker) + 兄 (e, “elder brother”)


庭

庭 (canonical)
Niwa (romanization)
Nifa (romanization)
には (hiragana historical)

/nipa/ → /nifa/ → /niwa/
From Old Japanese.


庵

庵 (canonical)
Iori (romanization)
Ifori (romanization)
いほり (hiragana historical)

/ipori/ → /ifori/ → /ihʷori/ → /iori/
From Old Japanese.
The 連(れん)用(よう)形(けい) (ren'yōkei, “stem or continuative form”) of the verb 庵(いお)る (ioru, “to reside in a temporary hut”, obsolete). Likely derived from io (see below).


庵

/am/ → /amu/ → /aɴ/
From Middle Chinese 庵 (MC 'om).


康

Nominalization of classical adjective 康し (yasushi), modern 康い (yasui, “calm, worry-free”).


弥

[β̞a̠ta̠ɾɯ̟]


彊

a ghost kanji thought to be derived from this character


律

From Middle Chinese 律 (MC lwit).
The Buddhist senses are a translation of Sanskrit विनय (vinaya, “discipline, guidance, humility”).

der

(Buddhism) short for 律宗 (Risshū): the Risshū school of Buddhism


徹

徹 (canonical)
徹 (canonical)
Akira (romanization)
Tōru (romanization)


志

ja-pos

志(ゆき) or 志(ここ) or 志(こころ) or 志(のぞみ) or 志(しい) or 志(のぞむ) or 志(し) • (Yuki or Koko or Kokoro or Nozomi or Shī or Nozomu or Shi)

志 (canonical)
志 (canonical)
志 (canonical)
志 (canonical)
志 (canonical)
志 (canonical)
志 (canonical)
Yuki (romanization)
Koko (romanization)
Kokoro (romanization)
Nozomi (romanization)
Shī (romanization)
Nozomu (romanization)
Shi (romanization)
こころ (hiragana)


応

/ou/ → /oː/
From Middle Chinese 應 (MC 'ingH).


忠

忠 (canonical)
忠 (canonical)
Tadashi (romanization)


恋

恋 (canonical)
Koi (romanization)
Kofi (romanization)
こひ (hiragana historical)

⟨ko₁pi₂⟩ → /kʷopʷɨ/ → /kofi/ → /kowi/ → /koi/
From Old Japanese.
The 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “stem or continuative form”) of verb 恋う (kou, “to love, yearn”).


恵

/kwei/ → /kei/ → /keː/
From Middle Chinese 惠 (MC hwejH).
The kan'on reading, so likely a later borrowing.


恵

Nominalization of the 連(れん)用(よう)形(けい) (ren'yōkei, “stem or continuative form”) of the verb 恵(めぐ)む (megumu, “to give (in charity); to bless, to be kind”).


恵

Nominalization of 恵む (megumu, “to give (in charity); to bless, to be kind”).


悠

ja-pos

悠(ゆう) • (Yū)


惇

惇(あつし) or 惇(じゅん) or 惇(つとむ) • (Atsushi or Jun or Tsutomu)

惇 (canonical)
惇 (canonical)
惇 (canonical)
Atsushi (romanization)
Jun (romanization)
Tsutomu (romanization)


慧

慧(けい) or 慧(さとし) or 慧(とし) • (Kei or Satoshi or Toshi)

慧 (canonical)
慧 (canonical)
慧 (canonical)
Kei (romanization)
Satoshi (romanization)
Toshi (romanization)


戊

土 (Tsuchi, “Earth”, one of the Five Elements) + の (no, attributive marker) + 兄 (e, “elder brother”)


戌

the Dog, the eleventh of the twelve Earthly Branches


操

Compound of 御 (mi, “honorific prefix emphasizing beauty”) + 青 (ao, “green/blue”), in the sense of the quality of an unchanging beautiful green in the face of anything, similar to an evergreen tree. The medial -s- may represent epenthesis between two vowels, or it may be cognate with Korean interfix -ㅅ- (-s-) used to mark possession, much like German -s-. See also 小雨 (kosame, “drizzle”), 霧雨 (kirisame, “drizzle”), 春雨 (harusame, “spring rain”), and 稲 (shine, “rice”).


政

政 (canonical)
Matsurigoto (romanization)

Possibly from Old Japanese.
Originally a compound of 祭り (matsuri, the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “stem or continuative form”) of verb 祭る (matsuru), “to enshrine, worship”) + 事 (koto, “matter, thing”). The koto changes to goto as an instance of rendaku (連濁).


教

From either the classical 終止形 (shūshikei, “terminal form”) satoshi of modern adjective 聡い (satoi, “clever, sharp-witted”), or the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “continuative or stem form”) satoshi of cognate verb 諭す (satosu, “to admonish, persuade, remonstrate → to redirect into a smarter direction”).


敦

敦 (canonical)
敦 (canonical)
Atsushi (romanization)
Tsutomu (romanization)


斉

(historical) a state in ancient China during the Zhou dynasty


斌

森田斌


斎

From Old Japanese.
Nominalization of the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “stem or continuative form”) of verb 斎く (itsuku, “to worship”).


斎

斎 (canonical)
Iwai (romanization)
Ifafi (romanization)
いはひ (hiragana historical)


斎

Nominalization of classical adjective 等し (hitoshi), modern 等しい (hitoshii, “equal, same”).


新

/sin/ → /ɕin/
From Middle Chinese 新 (MC sin).
Compare modern Mandarin 新 (xīn), Hakka 新 (sîn), Min Nan 新 (sin), and Wu 新.


新

From Old Japanese.
Extension of 粗(あら), 荒(あら) (ara, “crude, raw”).


新

Nominalization of adjective 新た (arata, “new”).


旭

Asahi (a city in Chiba Prefecture, Japan)


明

Nominalization of the stem of adjective 明らか (akiraka, “clear, visible”).


易

From Middle Chinese 易 (MC yek).
The kan'on, so likely a later borrowing.

short for 易経 (Ekikyō, “I Ching (Chinese classic text)”)


星

/posi/ → /ɸoɕi/ → /hoɕi/
From Old Japanese, from Proto-Japonic *pəsi.


星

From Middle Chinese 星 (MC seng).
The Singapore sense derives from the pre-World War Two kanji spelling 星加坡 (modern kanji spelling 新加坡) as borrowed from Chinese, itself a transliteration of Malay Singapura.

(Chinese astronomy) one of the Twenty-Eight Mansions in the Chinese system of constellations

シンガポール シンガポール#Japanese

short for シンガポール (Shingapōru): Singapore


昴

Likely from Old Japanese, use of kanji in Japanese texts first appears in the Tango-no-kuni Fudoki (c. mid-8th century), phonetic spelling first attested in the Wamyō Ruijushō (938 CE).
By extension from 統ばる (subaru, “to bunch together; to unite”, intransitive), due to the way the stars in the constellation all cluster together. Compare 統べる (suberu, “to command”, transitive).

(astronomy) the Pleiades star cluster, one of the Twenty-Eight Mansions


昴

Likely from Old Japanese.
Possibly an allusion from 昴の玉 (sumaru no tama, literally “cluster of pearls”) referenced multiple times in the Kojiki (712 CE); probably the original form of Subaru above. Compare the development of 皇 (sume-/sumera- → sube-/subera-, prefix of praise and respect to Shinto deities or an Emperor of Japan)

(astronomy, regional) the Pleiades star cluster, one of the Twenty-Eight Mansions


昴

昴 (canonical)
Bō (romanization)
Bau (romanization)
ばう (hiragana historical)

/bau/ → /bɔː/ → /boː/
From Middle Chinese 昴 (MC maewX).

(Chinese astronomy) the Hairy Head constellation, one of the Twenty-Eight Mansions, corresponding to the Pleiades star cluster in English


昴

Nominalization of classical adjective 高し (takashi), modern 高い (takai, “high”).


昴

Nominalization of verb 上る, 登る (noboru, “to ascend, rise”).


時

Kojiki
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
Old Japanese language

⟨to₂ki₁⟩ → */təkʲi/ → /toki/
From Old Japanese, from Proto-Japonic *təki. First attested in the Kojiki of 712 CE.
There are various theories regarding the ultimate derivation.
* Possibly a fusion of 常 (toko-, prefix for “always, unchanging”) + い (i, Old Japanese nominal particle).
: However, the sense of “unchanging” does not fit well with the sense of “the passing of time”. Separately, the phonetics of Old Japanese ⟨ki₁⟩ → /kʲi/ appear to contraindicate a fusion of /ko/ + /i/, which resulted in ⟨ki₂⟩ → /kʷi/ as seen at 木.
* Possibly derived from or otherwise related to 疾し (toshi, “sharp; happening quickly”), cognate with 研ぐ (togu, “to sharpen”).
: However, the historical spelling of toshi was to₁(si), as in 那杼佐祁流斗米 (nado₁ sake₁ru to₁ me₂, "why do you have knife cutting eyes").
* Possibly related to 年 (toshi, “year”).


晋

晋 (canonical)
晉 (alternative)
㬜 (alternative)

*/t͡sin/ → /siɴ/ → /ɕiɴ/
From Middle Chinese 晉 (MC tsinH).

(historical) the Chinese state of Jin (c. 11th century–376 BCE) during the Zhou dynasty

(historical) the Jin dynasty (266–420 CE)

the 西晋 (Seishin, “Western Jin”, 266–316 CE)

the 東晋 (Tōshin, “Eastern Jin”, 317–420 CE)

(historical) the Later Jin (936-947 CE), one of the Five Dynasties


晋

晋 (canonical)
Susumushin (romanization)
晉 (alternative)
㬜 (alternative)

[sɨsɨmɯ̟ɕĩɴ]

Compound of 進む (susumu, “to proceed”) + 晋 (Shin, “Jin”).
The 晋 kanji itself has a kun'yomi reading of すすむ (susumu).


晋

晋 (canonical)
Susumi (romanization)
晉 (alternative)
㬜 (alternative)

Nominalization of the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “stem or continuative form”) of verb 進む (susumu, “to proceed”).


晋

晋 (canonical)
Susumu (romanization)
晉 (alternative)
㬜 (alternative)

Nominalization of 進む (susumu, “to proceed”).


暁

⟨aka to₂ki₁⟩ → */akatəkʲi/ → /akat͡suki/
Shift from Old Japanese 曉 (akato₂ki₁).
Originally a compound of 明か (aka, the 未然形 (mizenkei, “incomplete form”) of verb 明く (aku), “to open”) + 時 (toki, “time, moment, hour”).


暁

暁 (canonical)
Gyō (romanization)
Geu (romanization)
げう (hiragana historical)

/ɡeu/ → */ɡʲəː/ → /ɡʲoː/
From Middle Chinese 曉 (MC xewX).


暁

Nominalization of classical adjective 聡し (satoshi), modern 聡い (satoi, “clever, smart, sharp”).


暁

Nominalization of verb 悟る (satoru, “to perceive, understand”).


暁

暁 (canonical)
Tōru (romanization)
Toforu (romanization)
とほる (hiragana historical)

Nominalization of verb 通る (tōru, “to be wise”).


暁

暁 (canonical)
Kyō (romanization)
Keu (romanization)
けう (hiragana historical)


暖

ja-pos

暖(あたた) or 暖(いふ) or 暖(うらら) or 暖(だん) or 暖(のどか) or 暖(のん) or 暖(はる) or 暖(はるか) or 暖(はるな) or 暖(ひなた) • (Atata or Ifu or Urara or Dan or Nodoka or Non or Haru or Haruka or Haruna or Hinata)

暖 (canonical)
暖 (canonical)
暖 (canonical)
暖 (canonical)
暖 (canonical)
暖 (canonical)
暖 (canonical)
暖 (canonical)
暖 (canonical)
Atata (romanization)
Ifu (romanization)
Urara (romanization)
Dan (romanization)
Nodoka (romanization)
Non (romanization)
Haru (romanization)
Haruka (romanization)
Haruna (romanization)
Hinata (romanization)
はるかはるな (hiragana)


朧

Daijisen
Extended shinjitai
The Tales of Ise
ja:松村明

Appears to be 凡 (obo, “dim, faint; hazy, indistinct”) + ろ (-ro, suffix apparently indicating general location or time, as in 所 (tokoro, “place”), 頃 (koro, “around (a specific time)”); compare ら (ra)).
The food-related senses may come from the way these dishes involve breaking up the main ingredients into smaller indistinct pieces.
First attested in The Tales of Ise from the early 900s.


未

the Sheep, the eighth of the twelve Earthly Branches


杉

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.


李

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

Japanese reading of the Chinese or Korean surname

Japanese reading of the South Korean surname


杣

⟨so₁ma⟩ → */sʷoma/ → /soma/
From Old Japanese.


来

From Middle Chinese 來 (MC loj).
Compare modern Mandarin 來／来 (lái).

a surname, especially of those descended from swordsmiths arriving from Goryeo around the mid-Kamakura period


松

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.


林

From Old Japanese. First mentioned in the Man'yōshū, completed in 759 CE.
Derives from the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “stem or continuative form”) of verb 生やす (hayasu, “to grow”). The root verb is in the transitive form, suggesting that the original sense of hayashi may have indicated a deliberately planted or managed grove.


林

/rimʉ/ → /riɴ/
From Middle Chinese 林 (MC lim).


柊

柊 (canonical)
Hīragi (romanization)
Fifiragi (romanization)
ひひらぎ (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.


柊

Daijisen Kyūjitai Shinjitai Tōkyō ja:松村明

/hiːraɡi/ → /hiraɡi/
Shift from hīragi above.


柊

ja-pos

柊(しゅう) • (Shū)

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


柏

Kashiwa (a city in Chiba Prefecture, Japan)


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

ja-pos

柚(ゆう) • (Yū)

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


柚

Probably a borrowing from Mandarin 柚子 (yòuzi).


柳

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

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


柵

From Middle Chinese 柵 (MC tsrhjaek).
Compare modern Cantonese 柵 /栅 (caak³).


柵

⟨siɡarami₁⟩ → /siɡaramʲi/ → /ɕiɡarami/
The 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “stem or continuative form”) of verb 柵む (shigaramu, “to entangle”).


柿

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.

align

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栄

Nominalization of the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “stem or continuative from”) of verb 栄える (sakaeru, “to thrive”).


栞

From the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “stem or continuative form”) of 枝(し)折(お)る (shioru): 枝(し) (shi, “branch”) + 折(お)る (oru, “to fold”).


桂

From Old Japanese. Originally a compound of 香 (ka, “fragrance, good smell”) + 出 (zu, “to come out, to put something out”) + ら (ra, nominalizing suffix): "that which puts out a good smell", from the way the wood smells good.

compound

桂飴: a type of sweet traditionally sold in villages in the mountains around Kyōto Prefecture

桂鮎: ayu caught in the Katsura River in Kyōto

桂巻: a style of women's head wrapping popular during the Muromachi Period

using a long piece of cloth tied in front above the forehead

桂宮: one of the four 親王家

branches of the Imperial Family of Japan which were eligible to succeed to the Chrysanthemum Throne in the event that the main line should die out

a woman selling of katsura ayu and katsura ame in areas around old Kyōto

a prostitute from the village of Katsura near Kyōto

a noblewoman's bridesmaid in ancient Japan

a neighbourhood on the west bank of the Katsura River in Kyoto


桃

Heian period
Jōmon people
Nara period
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
Nihon Shoki
Proto-Japonic language
Yayoi people
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 predated Old Japanese and originated from among the Yayoi people, descendants of the local Jōmon people in the Japanese archipelago and Proto-Japonic-speaking migrants from the Korean peninsula.
Possibly related to 梅 (ancient mume, modern ume, “Japanese apricot, Japanese plum”).


桐

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).


桜

桜 (canonical)
桜 (canonical)
Sakura (romanization)

From Old Japanese, first attested in the Kojiki, the oldest extant historical record of ancient Japan, compiled in 712 CE.
Originally derived from 咲く (saku, “to bloom, burst open”) + 等 (-ra, nominalizing and pluralizing suffix).

com

さくら さくら 弥生の空は 見渡す限り…

sakura sakura yayoi no sora wa miwatasu kagiri…

Cherry blossoms, cherry blossoms, across the spring sky, as far as the eye can see.

a piece of koto music, often entitled Sakura Sakura in English:

a piece of music played at the start of 平曲 (Heikyoku, retelling of The Tale of the Heike with 琵琶 (biwa, “lute accompaniment”))


梁

梁 (canonical)
Ryō (romanization)
Ryau (romanization)
りやう (hiragana historical)


梅

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

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


梓

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

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


梢

梢 (canonical)
Kozue (romanization)
Kozwe (romanization)
こずゑ (hiragana historical)

Originally a compound of 木 (ko, “tree”, combining form) + 末 (sue, “tip, end”).
The sue changes to zue as an instance of rendaku (連濁).


梢

梢 (canonical)
Shō (romanization)
Seu (romanization)
せう (hiragana historical)

/seu/ → /ɕeu/ → /ɕoː/
From Middle Chinese 梢 (MC sraew).


棗

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


椛

ja-pos

椛(あき) or 椛(いろは) or 椛(こころ) or 椛(もみじ) • (Aki or Iroha or Kokoro or Momiji)

椛 (canonical)
椛 (canonical)
椛 (canonical)
椛 (canonical)
Aki (romanization)
Iroha (romanization)
Kokoro (romanization)
Momiji (romanization)


椛

椛 (canonical)
椛 (canonical)
Kaba (romanization)
Momiji (romanization)


椿

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


楓

/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.


業

業(ごう) • (Gō)

/ɡopu/ → /ɡofu/ → /ɡou/ → /ɡoː/
From Middle Chinese 業 (MC ngjaep). The goon, so likely an earlier borrowing. Translation from the Sanskrit term कर्मन् (kárman, “act, action, performance”).


楽

Nominalization of the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “stem or continuative form”) of 好む (konomu, “to like, prefer”).


榊

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


榎

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”).


槍

The 連用形 (ren'yōkei, stem or continuative form) of 遣る (yaru, “to do, execute → to kill”).


様

様 (canonical)
Yō (romanization)
Yau (romanization)
やう (hiragana historical)

/jɨau/ → /jɔː/ → /joː/
From Middle Chinese 樣 (MC yangH).


樹

樹 (canonical)
樹 (canonical)
Itsuki (romanization)
Tatsuki (romanization)


橘

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.

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

short for 橘氏 (Tachibana-uji): an ancient clan who often held high-ranking positions in the medieval Japanese court, descended from Agata no Inukai no Michiyo and later Tachibana no Moroe

橘氏

Japanese destroyer Tachibana (1912)
w:Japanese destroyer Tachibana (1912)

(historical) a Sakura-class destroyer of the Imperial Japanese Navy (see Japanese destroyer Tachibana (1912) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia)

(historical) a destroyer subclass of the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II, modified from the Matsu-class destroyers

Japanese destroyer Tachibana (1944)
w:Japanese destroyer Tachibana (1944)

(historical) the lead ship of the Tachibana-subclass destroyers (see Japanese destroyer Tachibana (1944) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia)

a placename, especially in Takaichi District, Nara Prefecture where the titular 菩提寺 (bodaiji) is located


檜

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.


欧

From Middle Chinese 歐 (MC 'uw|'uwX), originally meaning “to vomit” (ʔəu^X, modern Mandarin ǒu, Cantonese au²). Later taken from the first character of the transliteration 欧羅巴 (Yōroppa, “Europe”), which is identified with ʔəu (modern Mandarin ōu, Cantonese au¹).
The 漢音 (kan'on) reading, so likely a later borrowing.

ヨーロッパ ヨーロッパ#Japanese

short for ヨーロッパ／欧羅巴 (Yōroppa, “Europe (a continent)”)


正

正 (canonical)
正 (canonical)
Tadashi (romanization)


歩

Nominalization of 歩み (ayumi), the 連用形 (ren’yōkei, “stem or continuative form”) of verb 歩む (ayumu, “to walk”).


歩

Nominalization of verb 歩む (ayumu, “to walk”).


殷

The senses “Shang dynasty” and “prosperous” are from Middle Chinese 殷 (MC 'j+n), corresponding to modern Mandarin yīn and Cantonese jan¹. The sense “rumbling” corresponds to modern Mandarin yǐn and Cantonese jan².
The kan'on pronunciation, so likely a later borrowing.


毅

犬養毅


氐

From Middle Chinese 氐 (MC tej), compare modern Mandarin 氐 (dī).
Used in Old Japanese as 借音 (shakuon) kana for ⟨te⟩.

(Chinese astronomy) Root, one of the Twenty-Eight Mansions

(historical) Di: an ancient ethnic group in western China


江

Early Middle Japanese
Edo period
Yebisu
hentaigana

/je/ → /e/
From Old Japanese. The ye pronunciation merged with e in Early Middle Japanese. The merged sound was ye until the Edo period, which is found in Yedo, yen and Yebisu.
This term was so representative of the ye reading that it lent its shape to the hentaigana 𛀁 (ye).


江

江 (canonical)
Kō (romanization)
Kau (romanization)
かう (hiragana historical)

/kau/ → /kɔː/ → /koː/
From Middle Chinese 江 (MC kaewng).
The 漢音 (kan'on) reading, so likely a later borrowing.


江

ja-pos

江(ごう) • (Gō)


池

/tʲie/ → /ti/ → /t͡ɕi/
From Middle Chinese 池 (MC drje).
Used in Old Japanese as 借音 (shakuon) kana for ⟨ti⟩ in the Nihon Shoki (720 CE).


汪

汪精衛 (ō seiei, “Wang Jingwei (Chinese politician and Japanese collaborator)”)

汪兆銘 (ō chōmei, “Wang Zhaoming: Wang Jingwei's birth name”)

a surname, listed 104th in the Hundred Family Surnames


沢

From Old Japanese, from Proto-Japonic *sapa.


泉

泉 (canonical)
Izumi (romanization)
Idumi (romanization)
いづみ (hiragana historical)

Daijirin
Daijisen
Kyōsuke Kindaichi
Man'yōshū
Yotsugana
ja:松村明

/idumi/ → /id͡zumi/ → (for most modern Japanese dialects; see also Yotsugana) /izumi/
From Old Japanese. Found in the Man'yōshū, completed some time after 759 CE.
Compound of 出づ (ancient reading idu, modern izu, “to come out”) + 水 (mi, “water”).


波

⟨nami₁⟩ → /namʲi/ → /nami/
From Old Japanese 浪 (nami₁), from Proto-Japonic *nami.


波

Short form of ateji (当て字) spelling 波蘭 (Pōrando).

ポーランド ポーランド#Japanese


洋

洋 (canonical)
Yō (romanization)
Yau (romanization)
やう (hiragana historical)

/jɨau/ → /jɔː/ → /joː/
From Middle Chinese 洋 (MC yang). Compare modern Mandarin 洋 (yáng).


洋

From Old Japanese. Found in the Man'yōshū, completed some time after 759 CE.


洋

Nominalization of the 終止形 (shūshikei, “terminal form”) of classical adjective 広し (hiroshi), modern 広い (hiroi, “vast, wide”).


浜

From Old Japanese, from Proto-Japonic *pama. First attested in the Kojiki of 712 CE.


海

⟨umi₁⟩ → */umij/ → /umi/
From Old Japanese, theorized as descending from Proto-Japonic *omi.
Has been thought to have been derived from a compound. There are two leading theories regarding the ultimate derivation:
* Shift from 大 (ō-, “big, great”) + 水 (mi, “water”, combining form).
: This is problematic phonetically because there is no known term having a related shift from /opo/ → /oː/ → /o/ → /u/, and semantically as there already exists a compound 大水 (ōmizu, “flood”).
* From う (u-, stem indicating “ocean”) + 水 (mi, “water”, combining form). The u- stem is evident in 魚 (uo, “fish”) and 潮 (ushio, “salt water; tide”), and in the 海 (una) element in various ancient terms (see below).


涼

涼 (canonical)
Ryō (romanization)
Ryau (romanization)
りやう (hiragana historical)

/rɨau/ → /rjau/ → /rjɔː/ → /rjoː/
From Middle Chinese 涼 (MC ljang|ljangH).

(historical) Liang, name of five of the Sixteen Kingdoms:

後涼 (Kōryō, Goryō, “Later Liang”, 386–403 CE)

南涼 (Nanryō, “Southern Liang”, 397–414 CE)

北涼 (Hokuryō, “Northern Liang”, 397–439 CE)

西涼 (Seiryō, “Western Liang”, 400–421 CE)


淳

ja-pos

淳(あつし) or 淳(じゅん) or 淳(きよし) • (Atsushi or Jun or Kiyoshi)

淳 (canonical)
淳 (canonical)
淳 (canonical)
Atsushi (romanization)
Jun (romanization)
Kiyoshi (romanization)


清

Borrowing from Mandarin Chinese 清 (qīng, literally “bright, clear”).


清

From Old Japanese, first attested in the Kojiki (712 CE).
Stem of 清か (sayaka, “bright, clear”).
Cognate with 冴える (saeru).


清

Nominalization of 清か (sayaka, “bright, clear”).


清

From classical adjective 清し (kiyoshi), modern 清い (kiyoi, “clear”).


渉

Nominalization of the verb 渉る (wataru, “to ford or otherwise cross a body of water”).


渚

⟨naɡi₁sa⟩ → */naɡʲisa/ → /naɡisa/
From Old Japanese.
Possibly a compound of 凪ぎ (nagi, “calming, dying down”, the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “continuative or stem form”) of verb 凪ぐ (nagu, “to calm down, to die down”, as of waves or wind), cognate with 和やか (nagoyaka, “calm, quiet”)) + 磯 (sa, “rocky shore, pebble beach”), where sa is an ancient alternative for so, the abbreviated combining reading of modern 磯 (iso), cognate with 石 (ishi, “rock, stone”).


渚

渚 (canonical)
Migiwa (romanization)
Migifa (romanization)
みぎは (hiragana historical)

[mʲiɡʲiβ̞a̠]

Daijirin Daijisen Kyūjitai Shinjitai ja:松村明

⟨mi₁ ki₁pa⟩ → */mʲiɡʲipa/ → /miɡifa/ → /miɡiwa/
Compound of 水 (mi, “water”, combining form) + 際 (kiwa, “edge, boundary”). The kiwa changes to giwa as an instance of rendaku (連濁).


温

温 (canonical)
On (romanization)
をん (hiragana historical)


港

Daijisen#Online_search_engines
Kyūjitai
Kōjien
Minato, Tokyo
Nihon Shoki
Shinjitai
Shinmura Izuru
ja:港
ja:港区

From Old Japanese. Attested in the Nihon Shoki of 720. Reconstructed as deriving from Proto-Japonic *minato.
The traditional etymology that Japanese sources trace back to is a compound of 水 (mi-, “water”) + な (na, assimilated apophonic form of の (no, “genitive case marker”)) + 門 (to, “gate”).
* However, this does not correlate cleanly with the etymology of 水 (mizu, “water”), reconstructed as Proto-Japonic *mentu (“water”). Then again, there are numerous attested words where 水 (mi) is used as the first and last element in compounds, suggesting either that the derivation of 水 (mizu) might differ.
Vovin, on the other hand suggests that the initial mi- was 御 (mi-, “honorific prefix”), while -na- meant "water", possibly from Proto-Tai *C̬.namꟲ (“water”). Compare 涙 (namida, “tears”), 菜葱, 水葱 (nagi, “Monochoria vaginalis”), 漬く (nazuku, “soak in water”, obsolete).
* However, this may present semantic difficulties, as any native formation like namida that proposes "water" for the initial nam and "eye" for a following component reverses the usual word-formation pattern for Japanese, where the main or head noun comes last. In addition, the na element appears in other words with no relation to "water", as an assimilated apophonic form of genitive particle の (no), seen in terms such as 掌 (tanagokoro, “palm of the hand”, literally “hand's heart/center”), 眼間 (manakai, “where the lines of sight of the eyes converge”, literally “eyes' exchanging/crossing”).

com

assimilated apophonic form of <i class="Jpan mention" lang="ja">の</i> (no, “genitive case marker”)

Minato (one of 23 special wards in Tokyo prefecture, Japan)

an administrative district in Nagoya prefecture

an administrative district in Osaka Prefecture


満

[mʲit͡sɨɾɯ̟]


満

満 (canonical)
満 (canonical)
Minoru (romanization)
Michiru (romanization)

[mʲit͡ɕiɾɯ̟]


源

Derived from 水 (mi, “water”, combining form) + な (na, Old Japanese possessive particle) + 元, 本 (moto, “origin, source”).
Vovin believes that the na in the initial mina- element is not a genitive particle, but rather actually meant "water", contending that the mi was instead the honorific prefix 御 (mi-). See also 港 (minato, “sluice; port”).

a surname, especially those who are descendants of Emperor Saga


溫

溫 (canonical)
On (romanization)
をん (hiragana historical)


潮

潮 (canonical)
Shio (romanization)
Sifo (romanization)
しほ (hiragana historical)

/sipo/ → /ɕifo/ → /ɕiwo/ → /ɕio/
From Old Japanese.


潮

潮 (canonical)
Ushio (romanization)
Usifo (romanization)
うしほ (hiragana historical)

/usipo/ → /usipo/ → /uɕifo/ → /uɕiwo/ → /uɕio/
From Old Japanese, first attested in the Kojiki (712 CE).


澪

澪 (canonical)
Mio (romanization)
Miwo (romanization)
みを (hiragana historical)

⟨mi₁ wo⟩ → */mʲiwo/ → /miwo/ → /mio/
From Old Japanese.
Derived as a compound of 水 (mi, ancient combining form of 水 (mizu), “water”) + 緒 (wo → o, “cord; something long and continuing”, likely cognate with 尾 (o, “tail”) from the sense of “something long and continuing from the end of the main body”).

ancient combining form of <i class="Jpan mention" lang="ja">水</i> (mizu), “water”

likely cognate with <i class="Jpan mention" lang="ja">尾</i> (o, “tail”) from the sense of “something long and continuing from the end of the main body”


灯

Nominalization of 灯し (toboshi), the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “stem or continuative form”) of verb 灯す (tobosu, “to light”, archaic).
Equivalent to a shift from tomoshi above, with the nasal /-m-/ becomes plosive /-b-/.


照

Nominalization of 照らし (terashi), the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “stem or continuative form”) of verb 照らす (terasu, “to shine on something, to illuminate something”).


燕

Tsubame (a city in Niigata Prefecture, Japan)


狛

(historical) the Goguryeo kingdom, located on the Korean Peninsula 37 BCE–668 CE


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)

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


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”).


珍

ja-pos

珍(めずらし) • (Mezurashi) ^(←めづらし (Medurasi)?)

珍 (canonical)
Mezurashi (romanization)
Medurasi (romanization)
めづらし (hiragana historical)

From the Old Japanese and classical Japanese 終止形 (shūshikei, “terminal or sentence-ending form”) of modern adjective 珍しい (mesurashii, “novel, curious, rare”).
Perhaps fittingly, the name itself is unusual.


琴

Kojiki
Man'yōshū
Nara period
Nihon Shoki

⟨ko₂to₂⟩ → */kətə/ → /koto/
From Old Japanese, attested in the three major literature works of the Nara period: the Kojiki (712 CE), the Nihon Shoki (720 CE), and the Man'yōshū (c. 759 CE).
Possibly derived from a compound of elements 木 (ko, “tree, wood”, combining form) + 音 (oto, “sound”), with the additional medial o dropped by haplology.


琴

/kimʉ/ → /kiɴ/
From Middle Chinese 琴 (MC gim). The kan'on pronunciation, so likely a later borrowing.

箏: a Chinese zither similar to the Japanese koto


甄

Ultimately from Middle Chinese 甄 (MC tsyin|kjien).


田

From Old Japanese. Appears in the Kojiki written in roughly 711-712. In turn, from Proto-Japonic *ta.


甲

ja-pos

甲(こう) • (Kō)


甲

木 (Ki, “Wood”, one of the Five Elements) + の (no, attributive marker) + 兄 (e, “elder brother”)


申

the Monkey, the ninth of the twelve Earthly Branches


男

男 (canonical)
Otoko (romanization)
Wotoko (romanization)
をとこ (hiragana historical)

⟨woto₂ko₁⟩ → */wotəkʷo/ → /wotoko/ → /otoko/
From Old Japanese.
Derived from おと (oto, “young?”, cognate with Old Japanese 復つ (wotu → otsu, “to become young again”)) + 子 (ko, “child”).
Compare 少女 (otome, “young woman”).

com

cognate with Old Japanese <i class="Jpan mention" lang="ojp">復つ</i> (wotu → otsu, “to become young again”)


男

/dam/ → /damʉ/ → /daɴ/
From Middle Chinese 男 (MC nom).
The 漢音 (kan'on) reading, so likely a later borrowing.


町

From Old Japanese, with the original meaning of "plot of land"; in turn, likely borrowed from an ancestor to Middle Korean 맡 (math, “field”).
All Japanese etymological theories base the etymology on the meaning of "town; section of a castle town", typically using 道 (chi, michi, “road”), but a Korean borrowing is more plausible given the earlier semantics in Old Japanese.


癸

ja-pos

癸(みずのと) • (Mizunoto) ^(←みづのと (Midunoto)?)

癸 (canonical)
Mizunoto (romanization)
Midunoto (romanization)
みづのと (hiragana historical)

水 (Mizu, “Water”, one of the Five Elements) + の (no, attributive marker) + 弟 (oto, “younger brother”)


皇

皇 (canonical)
Kō (romanization)
Kwau (romanization)
くわう (hiragana historical)

/kʷau/ → /kʷɔː/ → /kɔː/ → /koː/
From Middle Chinese 皇 (MC hwang).
The 漢音 (kan'on, literally “Han sound”) pronunciation, so likely a later borrowing from Middle Chinese.


皇

From the prefix 皇 (sume-) + 等 (-ra, nominalizing and pluralizing suffix).


皇

⟨sume₁ro₂ki₁⟩ → */sumʲerəkʲi/ → */sumeraki/ → /sumeraɡi/
Possibly a shift from Old Japanese 天皇 (sume₁ro₂ki₁).


盆

Benjamin Franklin
Bon Festival
Daijirin
Daijisen
Junjirō Takakusu
Kyōsuke Kindaichi
Kyūjitai
Shinjitai
Tōkyō
ja:お盆
ja:松村明
Ōsaka

Short for 盂蘭盆 (Urabon) or 盂蘭盆会 (Urabon'e), from Middle Chinese 盂蘭盆 (hju lan bwon) or 盂蘭盆會 (hju lan bwon hwajᴴ) (compare modern Mandarin 盂蘭盆 /盂兰盆 (yúlánpén) or 盂蘭盆會／盂兰盆会 (yúlánpénhuì)), a transcription of Pali ullumpana (“raising, helping”), present participle of Pali verb ullumpati (“to raise up, to help”).
A number of Japanese dictionaries state that this term derives from Sanskrit उल्लम्बन (ullambana), purportedly meaning “hanging upside-down” in reference to the souls of the dead being tortured in hell by being strung up by their feet. However, the Sanskrit word was sparsely, if at all, attested (Ashikaga, 1951); in addition, it would be the present participle of verb उल्लम्ब् (ullamb, “to hang”, intransitive), with no inherent “upside-down” meaning.
Moreover, neither the purported meaning of “hanging upside-down” nor the verifiable meaning of “hanging” match the semantics very well, given that the urabon ceremonies are about helping the dead, closer in meaning to the “helping” sense of the Pali verb. This suggests that explanations of the dead hanging upside-down in hell are more likely to be folk etymologies based on a mistaken connection to the Sanskrit verb, rather than a more direct semantic link to the Pali. Alternatively, Junjirō Takakusu (apud Ashikaga, 1951) propounded that the origin was in fact Pali ullumbana, a colloquial corruption of Pali ullumpana (“raising up; saving; helping”), and that the etymology was mistakenly attributed to Sanskrit.

zh-l

盂蘭盆會／盂兰盆会 (yúlánpénhuì)

cog

the Obon or Bon Festival, an event with Buddhist roots, celebrated on July 15

盂蘭盆

festival, more specifically the Buddhist ceremonies

盆と正月が一時に来たよう: → extremely busy

as if Bon and New Years came at the same time

Bon no jūroku-nichi wa jigoku no kama no futa ga aku

盆の十六日は地獄の釜の蓋が開く: “on the 16th day of Bon

the lids on the kettles of hell open up” → from a tradition that the 16th day of July is a day of rest and relative peace for the souls of the damned

when the demons of hell temporarily let people off the hook

and employers in this world would give their employees a day off

the mackerel business after Bon has finished

盆過ぎての鯖商い: → a metaphor for something past its prime

the way that grilled mackerel was often given as a gift food item

盆過ぎての蓮の葉: → a metaphor for something past its prime

the way that lotus leaves would often be used in offering during Obon

盆過ぎての蓮の花: → a metaphor for something past its prime

the way that lotus flowers would often be used in offering during Obon

Bon mikka wa yome to shūtome ga nakayoku naru

brides and mothers-in-law (can) get along for the three days of Bon

盆三日は嫁と姑が仲よくなる: → from how family and other guests come to visit during Obon

compare the famous Benjamin Franklin quote

“After three days men grow weary of a wench

List of festivals in Japan on Wiktionary


盆

Alteration from bon, where the final moraic n changed to ni. Compare the Japanese given name 紫苑 with similar development of reading Shioni from Shion.
Obsolete reading.

(obsolete) the Obon festival (see above)


真

真 (canonical)
真 (canonical)
Tadashi (romanization)

From classical adjective 正し (tadashi), modern 正しい (tadashii, “correct, right, true”).


真

From classical adjective 正し (masashi, “accurate, authentic, correct”).


瞭

ja-pos

瞭(りょう) • (Ryō)


瞳

Likely 人(ひと) (hito, “person”) + 見(み) (mi, “see”), in reference to one's own reflection when staring into someone else's eyes. Compare Latin pūpilla, of the same derivation.


矢

From Old Japanese. Found in the Kojiki of 712 CE, and in the Man'yōshū completed some time after 759 CE.


硲

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


祈

Nominalization of the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “continuative or stem form”) of verb 祈る (inoru, “to pray, to hope for”).


祈

Nominalization of the verb 祈る (inoru, “to pray, to hope for”).


祐

祐 (canonical)
Yū (romanization)
Iu (romanization)
いう (hiragana historical)

*/ɣɨu/ → /jɨu/ → /juː/
From Middle Chinese 祐 (MC hjuwH).


祐

Nominalization of classical adjective 広し (hiroshi), modern 広い (hiroi, “vast, wide”).


祥

祥 (canonical)
Shō (romanization)
Syau (romanization)
しやう (hiragana historical)

/sɨau/ → /sʲɨɔː/ → /sjɔː/ → /sjoː/
From Middle Chinese 祥 (MC zjang).


禅

→ English: Zen

→ French: zen

→ German: Zen

→ Spanish: Zen

→ Thai: เซน (seen), เซ็น (sen)

Shortened from 禅那 (zenna, “Zen meditation practice”), from Middle Chinese 禪那 (MC dzyen na), a transliteration of Sanskrit ध्यान (dhyāna, “profound meditation”). Compare Pali jhāna.

der

(Buddhism) short for 禅宗 (Zenshū): Zen Buddhism


禊

From Old Japanese, though the original pronunciation of the initial miso is likely unknown.
The term itself is derived from the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “stem or continuative form”) of verb 禊ぐ (misogu, “to perform ablutions (on someone)”, archaic).
Some sources suggest that this might be derived further from a compound of 身 (mi, “body”) + 注ぎ (sosogi, “pouring over, into, onto”), or alternatively from 水 (mi, “water”) + 注ぎ (sosogi, “pouring over, into, onto”). Considering that 身 had an ancient reading of ⟨mi₂⟩, while 水 had an ancient reading of ⟨mi₁⟩, the latter is a better potential match.


禹

Yu the Great, legendary founder of the Xia Dynasty in ancient China


禿

From Masayoshi Son, founder of SoftBank, who is bald.

(Internet slang, sometimes derogatory, sometimes offensive) SoftBank (telecommunications company based in Japan)

(Internet slang, sometimes derogatory, sometimes offensive) Masayoshi Son


秀

ja-pos

秀(しゅう) • (Shū)

→ English: S rank, S Tier


秦

(historical) the Qin dynasty (221-207 BCE), first dynasty of China

(historical) name of various states during the Sixteen Kingdoms period:


秦

Compound of 秦 (Hata, see above) + 秦 (Shin, “Qin (dynasty)”, see above).
The 秦 kanji itself has a kun-reading of はた (hata).


種

From Old Japanese, from Proto-Japonic *tanay.


稲

Man'yōshū
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
Oryza sativa
ja:イネ

⟨i₁ne⟩ → /ine/
From Old Japanese. Attested in the Man'yōshū of circa 759 CE. In turn, from Proto-Japonic *inay.
Possibly related to 米 (yone, “rice (husked grains of the Asian rice plant, Oryza sativa)”).


稲

稲 (canonical)
Ina (romanization)
いな (hiragana historical)

From Old Japanese.
Commonly found in compounds, rarely in isolation.


穰

ja-pos

穰(じょう) • (Jō)


窓

Daijisen#Online_search_engines
Kōjien
Man'yōshū
Nihon Kokugo Daijiten
Shinmura Izuru
ja:窓

From Old Japanese. Compound of 目 (ma, “eye”, ancient combining form of modern 目 (me)) + 門 (to, “gate, opening”), in reference to an opening for looking through.
Alternatively, may be a compound of 間 (ma, “gap”) + 門 (to, “gate, opening”).
First cited in some references to a text from 794, and also found in the Man'yōshū of 759.
The Microsoft Windows sense is a semantic loan from English Windows.

compound

ancient combining form of modern <i class="Jpan mention" lang="ja">目</i> (me)

(Internet slang, dated) Windows (an operating system)


竜

竜 (canonical)
Ryū (romanization)
Ryuu (romanization)
りゆう (hiragana historical)

(astronomy) short for りゅう座 (Ryūza): the constellation Draco


笑

笑 (canonical)
Emi (romanization)
Wemi (romanization)
ゑみ (hiragana historical)

The 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “continuative or stem form”) of verb 笑む (emu, “to smile; to bloom”).


箏

箏 (canonical)
Sō (romanization)
Sau (romanization)
さう (hiragana historical)

/sau/ → /sɔː/ → /soː/
From Middle Chinese 箏 (MC tsreang).
The kan'on reading, so likely the initial borrowing.


箕

(Chinese astronomy) the Winnowing Basket (constellation), one of the 28 mansions


籠

Appears to be derived from a compound of an uncertain element ka and 籠 (ko) below, with ko changing to go as an instance of rendaku (連濁).


粂

A 国字 (kokuji, “Japanese-coined character”), from 久 (ku) + 米 (me) (the surname 久米 (kume)). Compare 麿(まろ) (maro), 杢(もく) (moku).


粤

粤 (canonical)
Etsu (romanization)
Wetu (romanization)
ゑつ (hiragana historical)

From Middle Chinese 粵 (MC hjwot).
The kan'on pronunciation, so likely a later borrowing.

alternative name for 広東 (Kanton, “Guangdong”)

(historical) alternative spelling for 越: the Yue people to the south of ancient China


粽

Compound of 茅(ち) (chi, short for chigaya, "cogon") + 巻(まき) (maki, “wrapping”).
Originally, rice cakes were wrapped in leaves from cogon grass.


紀

short for 日本書紀 (Nihon Shoki, “Nihon Shoki”)


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.