カテゴリー: Japanese Culture Words

習字

SHUUJI

penmanship; calligraphy practice; learning to write characters

座敷

ZASHIKI

tatami room; Japanese-style room; formal reception room

往生

OUJOU

going to paradise (Buddhist); dying; being at a complete loss; giving up

花道

HANAMICHI

hanamichi; elevated walkway through the audience to the kabuki stage; path of flowers; triumphant exit/entrance

黄金時代

OUGONJIDAI

golden age; era of prosperity and achievement

園芸

ENGEI

horticulture; gardening; cultivation of plants

提灯

CHOUCHIN

paper lantern; chochin lantern

儀式

GISHIKI

ceremony; ritual; rite; formal observance

武士

BUSHI

samurai; warrior; military man of feudal Japan

障子

SHOUJI

shoji; a sliding screen door made of a wooden lattice frame covered with translucent Japanese paper

扇子

SENSU

folding fan; a Japanese folding fan

三日坊主

MIKKA BOUZU

quitter; someone who gives up after just three days; a person who can't stick with anything

一期一会

ICHIGO ICHIE

treasure each encounter as a once-in-a-lifetime meeting; one time, one meeting

絵馬

EMA

ema; a wooden votive plaque on which wishes are written and hung at Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples

サラリーマン

SARARIMAN

salaryman; white-collar office worker; a company employee on a fixed salary

飲み会

NOMIKAI

drinking party; social gathering centered on drinking

琴

KOTO

koto; the Japanese zither (traditional 13-string instrument)

鐘

KANE

kane; a large hanging bell (as at a Buddhist temple); the bell toll

下駄

GETA

geta; traditional Japanese wooden sandals with elevated wooden supports

幽霊

YUREI

ghost / spirit of the dead

天狗

TENGU

tengu — a supernatural mountain being with a long nose / conceited person

書道

SHODOU

Japanese calligraphy / the way of writing

茶道

SADOU

the way of tea / Japanese tea ceremony

龍

RYUU

dragon

お寺

OTERA

Buddhist temple

お年玉

OTOSHIDAMA

New Year's gift money / money given to children at New Year's

鬼

ONI

demon / ogre / devil / troll / supernatural being (also: intensifier slang)

年賀状

NENGAJOU

New Year's greeting card