Wiktionary

な


な U+306A, な
HIRAGANA LETTER NA
← ど
[U+3069] 		Hiragana に →
[U+306B]

JapaneseEdit

Stroke order
 

PronunciationEdit

Etymology 1Edit

Derived in the Heian period from writing the man'yōgana kanji 奈 in the cursive sōsho style.

SyllableEdit

な (romaji na)

  1. The hiragana syllable な (na). Its equivalent in katakana is ナ (na). It is the twenty-first syllable in the gojūon order; its position is な行あ段 (na-gyō a-dan, “row na, section a”).
See alsoEdit

Etymology 2Edit

Probably derived from mild emphatic interjection and sentence-final particle ね, itself from Old Japanese, indicating a general sense of admiration or consideration, or hope that the preceding statement comes to pass. Compare Kapampangan ná (“huh, right, isn't it, already”).

InterjectionEdit

な • (na) 

  1. (masculine, informal, mild emphatic) used to get someone's attention, generally carries neutral or slightly positive connotations
    な、聞(き)いたかい。 ― na, kiita kai. ― Hey, did you hear?

ParticleEdit

な • (na) 

  1. (informal, mild emphatic) sentence-final particle indicating emotion or mild emphasis
    そうかな。 ― sō ka na. ― Huh, is that so.
    Synonym: なあ (nā)
Usage notesEdit

Often used when you are speaking to yourself, and can be considered less formal than the agreement-asking particle ね.

Etymology 3Edit

/ni aru/ → /naru/ → /na/

From Old Japanese. Originally an abbreviation of に (ni, particle) + ある (aru, the attributive form of classical あり ari, “to be”).[1]

ParticleEdit

な • (na) 

  1. copula particle used after 形容動詞 (keiyōdōshi, often referred to in English teaching texts as -na adjective, literally “adjective verb”) to make them function as adjectives
    変(へん)な人(ひと) ― hen na hito ― a strange person
Usage notesEdit

The older なる (naru) form is still used to impart a more formal, archaic, or poetic sense.

静(しず)かなる田(でん)園(えん) ― shizuka naru den'en ― the quiet countryside

Etymology 4Edit

From Old Japanese. Probably the root na of the negative adjective ない (nai).[2][3] An alternative theory is that this is the imperfective conjugation of negative auxiliary verb ず (zu).[2]

First cited to the Nihon Shoki of 720.[2]

ParticleEdit

な • (na) 

  1. [from 720] (masculine in modern Japanese, informal, added after the dictionary form of a verb) indicates prohibition: don't
    行(い)くな！ ― Iku na! ― Don't go!
    無(む)断(だん)で引(いん)用(よう)するな。 ― Mudan de in'yō suru na. ― Don't quote it without permission.
    混(ま)ぜるな危険(きけん) ― mazeru na kiken ― dangerous: do not mix
Usage notesEdit

Considered very informal and potentially brusque depending on tone of voice. This would never be used in polite conversation, where the construction ～ないで下さい (~naide kudasai) would be used instead, appended to the imperfective stem of the verb in question. Examples:

  • Addressing close friends, children, or possibly subordinates:
    するな。 ― suru na. ― Don't do that.
  • Addressing anyone else:
    しないでください。 ― shinaide kudasai. ― (Please) Don't do that.

Etymology 5Edit

Clipping of polite imperative auxiliary verb form なさい (nasai).

SuffixEdit

な • (-na) 

  1. (informal, added after the stem form of a verb) indicates an imperative statement or command: do
    あっちへ行(い)きな、ぼうや。
    Atchi e ikina, bōya.
    Go over there, boy → Get out of the way, boy!
    座(すわ)りなよ。 ― suwarina yo. ― Sit → Have a seat.
Usage notesEdit
  • A casual way of issuing commands; not as rough as the imperative conjugation of a verb.
  • Usage is restricted to addressing friends, children, or subordinates.
    食(た)べな ― tabena ― Eat!
  • In spoken Japanese, the prohibitive na and the imperative na are also differentiated by pitch accent patterns. For prohibitive na, the pitch on the suffix follows the pitch on the verb stem; and for imperative na, the pitch is higher than on the verb stem.
    書くな (kaku na, “don't write”) → かくな
    書きな (kaki na, “write”) → かきな
SynonymsEdit

Roughly in order of politeness:

Etymology 6Edit

The readings of various kanji, as derived from native Japonic roots.

For pronunciation and definitions of な – see the following entries.
【名】1
[noun] name
[noun] reputation
【菜】4
[noun] greens
【儺】H
[noun] driving away the gods of disease
【汝】J
[pronoun] (archaic, obsolete) second-person singular pronoun: you, thou
Alternative spelling
己
【七】1
[numeral] (colloquial) seven, 7
(This term, な, is an alternative spelling of the above terms.
For a list of all kanji read as な, not just those used in Japanese terms, see Category:Japanese kanji read as な.)

(The following entries are uncreated: 字, 無.)

Etymology 7Edit

The readings of various kanji, as borrowed from Chinese.

For pronunciation and definitions of な – see the following entry.
【那】S
[affix] what, which
(This term, な, is an alternative spelling of the above Sino-Japanese term.
For a list of all kanji read as な, not just those used in Japanese terms, see Category:Japanese kanji read as な.)

(The following entries are uncreated: 南, 奈, 娜, 懦.)

ReferencesEdit

  1. ^ 1988, 国語大辞典（新装版） (Kokugo Dai Jiten, Revised Edition) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 “な”, in 日本国語大辞典 (Nihon Kokugo Daijiten, “Nihon Kokugo Daijiten”)‎[1] (in Japanese), 2nd edition, Tōkyō: Shogakukan, 2000, →ISBN
  3. ^ 2006, 大辞林 (Daijirin), Third Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN

Old JapaneseEdit

Etymology 1Edit

Possibly cognate with modern Korean 날 (nal, “blade”).

Listed in various sources as the na portion in the term 刀 (katana), with the na described as meaning 刃 (“blade, edge”).[1][2][3] However, there is no historical attestation for any na reading for this character.

NounEdit

な (na) (kana な)

  1. any sharp and thin cutting implement: a blade, edge
    • c. 759, Man'yōshū (book 4, poem 616),[4] text here
      劔大刀名惜雲吾者無君爾不相而年之經去禮者
      turugi1-tati na no2 wosike1ku mo ware pa nasi ki1mi1 ni apazute to2si no2 pe2nureba
      I do not even miss precious you, given the years that have passed without meeting with you.
      [Note: turugi1-tati (literally “double-edged longsword”) is a pillow word establishing a poetic association with the following na, literally meaning blade or edge and alluding to sharpness and importance. This na could also elliptically mean 名 (na, “name”) or even 汝 (na, “you”) depending on context, based on the homophonic readings.]
DescendantsEdit
  • Japanese: 刀 (katana)
  • Japanese: 鉈 (nata) (possibly)

Etymology 2Edit

Various other terms.

NounEdit

な (na)

  1. 名: name
  2. 字: written character
  3. 肴, 魚, 菜: side dish, especially fish, greens, etc.

PronounEdit

な (na)

  1. 汝: first-person singular pronoun: I, me; second-person singular pronoun: you, thou
  2. 己, 汝: third-person reflexive pronoun: one, oneself, itself

ReferencesEdit

  1. ^ 1988, 国語大辞典（新装版） (Kokugo Dai Jiten, Revised Edition) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan
  2. ^ 2006, 大辞林 (Daijirin), Third Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN
  3. ^ 1995, 大辞泉 (Daijisen) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan, →ISBN
  4. ^ Satake, Akihiro; Hideo Yamada; Rikio Kudō; Masao Ōtani; Yoshiyuki Yamazaki (c. 759) Shin Nihon Koten Bungaku Taikei 1: Man’yōshū 1 (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Iwanami Shoten, published 1999, →ISBN.
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