Glossary of Japanese words of Portuguese origin

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Many Japanese words of Portuguese origin entered the Japanese language when Portuguese Jesuit priests introduced Christian ideas, Western science, technology and new products to the Japanese during the Muromachi period (15th and 16th centuries).

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The Portuguese were the first Europeans to reach Japan and the first to establish direct trade between Japan and Europe, in 1543. During the 16th and 17th century, Portuguese Jesuits had undertaken a great work of Catechism, that ended only with religious persecution in the early Edo period (Tokugawa Shogunate). The Portuguese were the first to translate Japanese to a Western language, in the Nippo Jisho (日葡辞書, literally the "Japanese-Portuguese Dictionary") or Vocabulario da Lingoa de Iapam compiled by Portuguese Jesuit João Rodrigues, and published in Nagasaki in 1603, who also wrote a grammar Arte da Lingoa de Iapam (日本大文典, nihon daibunten). The dictionary of Japanese-Portuguese explained 32,000 Japanese words translated into Portuguese. Most of these words refer to the products and customs that first came to Japan via the Portuguese traders.

List of direct loanwords

Many of the first words which were introduced and entered the Japanese language from Portuguese and Dutch are written in kanji or hiragana, rather than katakana , which is the more common way to write loanwords in Japanese in modern times. Kanji versions of the words are ateji , characters that are "fitted" or "applied" to the words by the Japanese, based on either the pronunciation or the meaning of the word.

The indicates the word is archaic and no longer in use.

Japanese Rōmaji Japanese scriptJapanese meaningPre-modern PortugueseModern PortugueseEnglish translation of PortugueseNotes
[1] anjoアンジョangelanjoanjoangel
bateren伴天連 / 破天連a missionary priest (mainly from Jesuit)padrepadrepriestused in early Christianity
batteraばってら / ja:バッテラ kind of sushi bateirabateira, barcoboatnamed after its shape
berandaベランダbalconyvarandavarandabalcony
bīdama ja:ビー玉 marbles (spheric-shaped)----berlindes, bola-de-gude, bolinha-de-gudemarblesabbrev. of bīdoro (Japanese: 'glass', also from Portuguese: see below) + tama (Japanese: 'ball').
bīdoroビードロ
  • 1.(obsolete [2] ) glass.
  • 2. a traditional sound-making toy made of glass, also called popin  [ ja ]. [3]
vidrovidroglass
birōdoビロード / 天鵞絨velvetveludoveludovelvetberubetto (from English velvet) is also used today.
bōro ja:ボーロ / ぼうろa kind of small biscuit or cookiebolobolocake
botanボタン / 釦 / 鈕buttonbotãobotãobutton
charumera ja:チャルメラ small double-reed wind instrumentcharamela charamela (caramelo, "caramel", is cognate) shawm (cf. the cognate chalumeau)formerly played in Japan by ramen vendors
chokkiチョッキwaistcoat (UK); vest (U.S.); Jacketjaquecolete, jaquetawaistcoat (UK); vest (U.S.); JacketBesuto (from English vest) is common today.
[1] DeusuデウスChristian GodDeusDeusGod
dochirina ドチリナ doctrinedoutrinadoutrinadoctrine
furasuko ja:フラスコ laboratory flaskfrascofrascoflask
hiryūzu ja:飛竜頭 Deep-fried glutinous rice balls; alternatively, fried tofu balls with mixed vegetables, also known as ganmodoki filhósfilhós
igirisuイギリス / 英吉利the United KingdominglezinglêsEnglish (adj); Englishman
[1] inherunoインヘルノChristian hellinfernoinfernohell
irumanイルマン / 入満 / 伊留満 / 由婁漫missionary next in line to become a priestirmãoirmãobrotherused in early Christianity
jōro ja:じょうろ / 如雨露watering canjarrojarrojug, watering can"possibly from Portuguese" (Kōjien dictionary)
juban/jibanじゅばん / ja:襦袢 undervest for kimono gibãoundervestThe French form jupon led to zubon (trousers).
kabocha ja:カボチャ / 南瓜
Camboja (abóbora)(abóbora) cabotiáCambodia (-n pumpkin)Was thought to be from Cambodia, [4] imported by the Portuguese.
kanakin/kanekin金巾 / かなきん / かねきんshirting, percale canequimunbleached muslin/calicojargon from the textile business
kandeyaカンデヤoil lampcandeia, candelavela, candeiacandleextinct. Kantera from Dutch kandelaar was also used.
kapitan甲比丹 / 甲必丹captain (of ships from Europe in The Age of Discovery)capitãocapitãocaptainextinct. Japanese word senchō or the English form kyaputen (captain) is now used
kappa ja:合羽 raincoatcapacapa (de chuva)raincoat, coatreinkōto (from English raincoat) is prevalent nowadays.
karuta ja:かるた / 歌留多karuta cards, a traditional type of playing cards which is largely different from the modern worldwide ones cartas (de jogar)cartas (de jogar)(playing) cards
karusanカルサンa specific kind of hakama trouserscalsancalçaotrousers
kasutera , kasutēra, kasuteira ja:カステラ Kind of sponge cake [5] (Pão de) Castela(Pão de) Castela(Bread/cake of) Castile Theories cite Portuguese castelo (castle) or the region of Castile (Castela in Portuguese). The cake itself may originally derive from bizcocho, a Spanish kind of biscotti.
kirishitan ja:キリシタン / 切支丹 / 吉利支丹 (Also written in the more negative forms 鬼理死丹 and 切死丹 after Christianity was banned by the Tokugawa Shogunate)Christian people in 16th and 17th centuries (who were severely persecuted by the Shogunate)christãocristãoChristianToday's Christian people are Kurisuchan (from English Christian).
kirisutoキリスト / 基督 Christ ChristoCristoChrist
koendoroコエンドロcoriandercoentrocoentrocoriander
konpeitō 金米糖 / ja:金平糖 / 金餅糖Kind of star-shaped candyconfeitoconfeitoconfection, candies(related to confetti )
koppuコップcupcopocopocup
[1] kurusuクルスChristian crosscruzcruzcrossused in early Christianity, now jūjika (cross), a kanji translation
manto ja:マント cloakmantomantocloak
marumero ja:マルメロ quince marmelomarmeloquince
meriyasu ja:メリヤス / 莫大小a kind of knit textilemediasmeiashosiery, knitting
mīraミイラ / 木乃伊 mummy mirramirra myrrh Originally, mummies embalmed using myrrh.
nataruナタル Christmas NatalNatal Christmas Annual festival celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ
orandaオランダ / 和蘭(陀) / 阿蘭陀The Netherlands, Holland HollandaHolanda, Países BaixosThe Netherlands, Holland
orugan ja:オルガン organ (music) orgãoórgãoorgan
pan ja:パン breadpãopãobreadOften wrongly connected to the Spanish pan or the French pain, both with the same meaning and the same Latinate origin. The word was introduced into Japan by Portuguese missionaries. [6]
[1] paraisoパライソparadise. Specifically in reference to the Christian ideal of heavenly paradise.paraísoparaísoparadise
pin kara kiri madeピンからキリまでrunning the whole gamut, jumble of wheat and tares(pinta, cruz)(pinta, cruz)(dot, cross)literally 'from pin to kiri'
rasha ja:ラシャ / 羅紗a kind of wool woven textileraxa– (feltro) felt
rozarioロザリオ rosary rosariorosáriorosary
sabatoサバトSaturdaysábadosábadoSaturday
saboten ja:サボテン / 仙人掌cactussabãosabãosoapThe derivation is said to come from the soap-like feature of its juice, although there are controversies.
cf. shabon
Santa MariaサンタマリアSaint MarySanta MariaSanta MariaSaint MarySaint Mary
sarasa ja:更紗 chintz saraçachintz
shabonシャボンsoapsabãosabãosoapMore likely from older Spanish xabon. Usually seen in compounds such as shabon-dama ('soap bubbles') in modern Japanese.
shurasuko ja:シュラスコ Brazilian style churrasco barbecuechurrascobarbecueModern borrowing.
subetaスベタ(an insulting word for women)espadaespadaswordOriginally a term from playing cards, in reference to certain cards that earned the player zero points. This meaning extended to refer to "a boring, shabby, low person", and from there to mean "an unattractive woman".
tabakoタバコ / 煙草 / たばこtobacco, cigarettetobacotabacotobacco, cigarette
totan ja:トタン
tutanaga [7] :補注(1)

(Could be of other origin, as Nippo jisho implies. [8] )

tutenag (a zinc alloy; zinc) [9] The homophone "塗炭" is sometimes mistaken as an ateji for "トタン", but is actually a different word of native origin meaning "agony". [10]
tempura ja:天ぷら / 天麩羅 / 天婦羅deep-fried seafood/vegetablestempero, temperar; [11] [12] temporatempero, temperar; temporaseasoning, to season; times of abstinence from meat
zabon ja:ざぼん / 朱欒 / 香欒 pomelo, shaddock zamboazamboa pomelo, shaddock
[1] zesu or zezusuゼス, ゼズスJesusJesuJesusJesusThe modern term イエス (Iesu) is a reconstruction of the Ancient Greek term.

List of indirect loanwords

Japanese Rōmaji Japanese scriptJapanese meaningPre-modern PortugueseModern PortugueseEnglish translation of PortugueseNotes
beranda ベランダ balconyvaranda pt:varanda balconyLoanword from English "veranda", [13] which derived from India, which in turn probably originated from Portuguese : varanda. [14]

False cognates

Some word pairs that appear similar are actually false cognates of unrelated origins.

Arigatō

It is often suggested that the Japanese word arigatō derives from the Portuguese obrigado, both of which mean "Thank you", but evidence indicates arigatō has a purely Japanese origin, [15] so these two words are false cognates.

Arigatō is an "u"-sound change of arigataku. [16] In turn, arigataku is the adverbial form of an adjective arigatai, from older arigatashi, [17] itself a compound of ari + katashi. Written records of arigatashi exist dating back to the Man'yōshū compiled in the 8th century AD, [17] :(1) well before Japanese contact with the Portuguese in the 16th century.

Ari is a conjugation of verb aru meaning "to be", and katashi is an adjective meaning "difficult", so arigatashi literally means "difficult to exist", [17] hence "rare" and thus "precious", [17] :(3) with usage shifting to indicate gratitude for receiving an outstanding kindness. [17] :(5) The phrase to express such gratitude is arigatō gozaimasu, [16] :(イ) or arigatō for short. [16] :(ロ)

Other words not of Portuguese origin

Japanese Rōmaji Japanese scriptEnglish translation of JapaneseSupposedly similar Portuguese wordEnglish translation of PortugueseNotes
buranko wikt:ぶらんこ swing, swingsetbalançoswingNot from Portuguese [18] [19]
gan wikt:雁 wild goosegansogooseNot from Portuguese [15]
inoru (transcribed by Fonseca as inoriru, [15] erroneously. [20] ) wikt:祈る prayorarprayNot from Portuguese [15]
miru wikt:見る seemirarlook [21] Not from Portuguese [15]

See also

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Not found in "Full text search - Japan Bible Society Interconfessional Version" 聖書本文検索 - 聖書協会共同訳. Japan Bible Society (in Japanese). Retrieved 2021-01-18.
  2. "ビードロ". ja:ブリタニカ国際大百科事典 小項目事典 (Britannica international encyclopedia, Japanese edition) via Kotobank. Britannica Japan. 2014. Retrieved 2021-01-20.
  3. "ビードロ (2)". Nihon Kokugo Daijiten Concise edition (精選版 日本国語大辞典) via Kotobank. Shogakukan. 2006. Retrieved 2021-01-20.
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  5. "kasutera-o-pao-de-lo-japones". Expresso . Retrieved 2021-01-18.[ permanent dead link ]
  6. See Infoseek Japanese-English dictionary for pan/パン [ permanent dead link ].
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    • Pronunciation in 16c of tǒtan was [tɔ:tan]: Society of Jesus, ed. (1980). オ段長音の表記 ['O' gemination ]. Hoyaku Nippo jisho (in Japanese). Translated by Doi, Tadao; Morita, Takeshi; Chonan, Minoru. Japan: Iwanami Shoten. p. 848.
  9. "Tutenag". A New English Dictionary On Historical Principles (OED). Vol. 10 Part 1. Book TI-TZ (1926 ed.). Oxford: Clarendon Press. 1926. p. 513.
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  11. LINGUIST List 12.1906 Thu Jul 26 2001 Sum: "Arigato" and "Tempura"
  12. Tracking Down Tempura by Takashi Morieda Archived 2007-05-14 at the Wayback Machine
  13. Eizo, Katsuya (1916-02-12). ベランダー [veranda]. 外来語辞典[ gairaigo dictionary] (in Japanese) (訂増 ed.). Tokyo: 二松堂書店 (Futamatsudō shoten). p. 564. doi:10.11501/937203. (英)[loanword from English]
  14. "veranda". A New English Dictionary On Historical Principles. Vol. 10 (NED ed.). Oxford: Clarendon Press. 1928. p. 118.
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  16. 1 2 3 "ありがとう (有難)". Nihon Kokugo Daijiten Concise edition (精選版 日本国語大辞典) via Kotobank. Shogakukan. 2006. Retrieved 2021-10-04.
  17. 1 2 3 4 5 "ありがたい (有難)". Nihon Kokugo Daijiten Concise edition (精選版 日本国語大辞典) via Kotobank. Shogakukan. 2006. Retrieved 2021-10-04.
  18. "鞦韆". Nihon Kokugo Daijiten Concise edition (精選版 日本国語大辞典) via Kotobank. Shogakukan. 2006. Retrieved 2021-11-23. 〘名〙 (擬態語「ぶらり」「ぶらん」などからできた語か。一説に、balanço からとも)
    ...[語誌](1)語源は柳田国男の唱えた「ブランとさがってゐるからである」〔ブランコの話〕というのが妥当か。
    (2)「ブランコ」の語形はおもに明治以降と思われる。
  19. "ブランコ/鞦韆/ぶらんこ" . Retrieved 2021-11-23. 揺れや振動を意味するポルトガル語の「balanço(バランソ)」に由来する説もある。
    しかし、江戸時代には「ぶらんこ」のほか「ぶらここ」や「ふらここ」とも呼ばれており、「ぶーらんこ」「ぶらりんこ」「さんげぶらりん」などの呼称もあった。
    擬態語からであれば「ブランコ」を含むこれらの呼称に通じるが、「バランソ」から「ふらここ」や「ぶらりんこ」に変化することは考え難い。
  20. "い‐の・る【祈・祷】". Nihon Kokugo Daijiten Concise edition (精選版 日本国語大辞典) via Kotobank. Shogakukan. 2006. Retrieved 2021-11-24. [ Japanese verb conjugation ra column Godan verb (yodan verb in Classical Japanese)]: This means that this verb has no "-riru" form.
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