ぐる
Japanese
editEtymology 1
editThis term is the root of a cluster of terms deriving from a basic meaning of turning, spinning, going around in a circle.
- ぐるり (gururi, adverb), attested from 1603[1]
- ぐるぐる (guruguru, adverb), attested from 1625[1]
- ぐる (guru, noun), attested from 1692[1]
- ぐるっと (gurutto, adverb), attested from 1907[1]
Almost certainly derived from verb 繰る (kuru, “to wind, to spin, to turn pages”), with similar derivatives:
- くるり (kururi, adverb), attested from the 1150s[1]
- くるくる (kurukuru, adverb), attested from the late 900s[1]
- くるっと (kurutto, adverb), attested from 1907[1]
Compare also likely-related noun 枢 (kuru, kururu, kururi, “door hinge”).
Root
editDerived terms
editEtymology 2
editOriginated as a jōruri or kabuki argot word, from the sense of a (usually criminal) ring that metaphorically goes ぐるぐる (guruguru, “around and around”).[2]
Pronunciation
editNoun
edit- [from 1717] (slang) accomplice, co-conspirator
Etymology 3
editShortening of ぐるぐる髷 (guruguru mage, guruguru wage), a hairstyle during the Edo period wherein the hair is simply wound up (guruguru) and pinned on top of the head in a bun.[1]
Pronunciation
editNoun
edit- [from 1692] (slang, historical) the bun hairstyle
- Synonym: ぐるぐる髷 (guruguru mage, guruguru wage)
Etymology 4
editShortening and shift from ぐるり (gururi), from the way that an 帯 (obi, “sash”) winds around the body.[1]
Pronunciation
editNoun
editReferences
edit- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 Shōgaku Tosho (1988) 国語大辞典(新装版) [Unabridged Dictionary of Japanese (Revised Edition)] (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan, →ISBN
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN
- ^ NHK Broadcasting Culture Research Institute, editor (1998), NHK日本語発音アクセント辞典 [NHK Japanese Pronunciation Accent Dictionary] (in Japanese), Tokyo: NHK Publishing, Inc., →ISBN
- ^ Kindaichi, Kyōsuke et al., editors (1997), 新明解国語辞典 [Shin Meikai Kokugo Jiten] (in Japanese), Fifth edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN