労務者

Japanese

Kanji in this term
労	務	者
ろう Grade: 4	む Grade: 5	しゃ Grade: 3
on’yomi

Alternative spelling
勞務者 (kyūjitai)

Alternative forms

• ロームシャ (forced laborer)

Noun

労(ろう)務(む)者(しゃ) • (rōmusha) 

1. A laborer, a workman, one who does manual labor.
   • 2018 October 29 (last accessed), “Nōgyō de shūshoku shitai [Work wanted in agriculture]”, in Ad Hokkaido‎^[1], archived from the original on 29 August 2018:

     仕(し)事(ごと)内(ない)容(よう)：もち米(こめ)、アスパラ、カボチャ、ブルーベリー、小(こ)麦(むぎ)等(など)の栽(さい)培(ばい)、収(しゅう)穫(かく)、販(はん)売(ばい)業(ぎょう)務(む)、労(ろう)務(む)者(しゃ)管(かん)理(り)。

     Shigoto naiyō: mochi kome, asupara, kabocha, burūberī, komugi nado no saibai, shūkaku, hanbai gyōmu, rōmusha kanri.

     Job details: Glutinous rice, asparagus, pumpkin, blueberry, wheat etc. cultivation, harvesting, sales procedures, management of laborers.

2. A person pressed into forced labor.
3. A non-Japanese person compelled to labor for Japanese forces during the Second World War, especially in Southeast Asia or in parts of China; a romusha, coolie.
   • 2002, Hiroshi Katō, Dai Tōa Sensō to Indonesia [Indonesia and the Pacific War], page 144:

     当(とう)時(じ)の昭(しょう)南(なん) (シンガポール) に一(いち)時(じ)寄(き)港(こう)したさいの労(ろう)務(む)者(しゃ)たちの悲(ひ)惨(さん)な生(せい)活(かつ)が『思(おも)い出(で)の昭(しょう)南(なん)博(はく)物(ぶつ)館(かん)』に出(で)て来(く)る。

     Tōji no Shōnan (Shingapōru) ni ichiji kikō shita sai no rōmusha tachi no hisan na seikatsu ga “Omoide no Shōnan Hakubutsukan” ni dete kuru.

     The tragic life of romusha transported through Shōnan (Singapore) at that time is shown in Omoide no Shōnan Hakubutsukan.

Descendants

• Dutch: romoesja, romusha
• English: romusha
• Indonesian: romusa, romusha, romusya

 

See also

• Rōmusha on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• 労務者 on the Japanese Wikipedia.Wikipedia ^ja

References

• Martin Collick, David P. Dutcher, Souichi Tanabe, and Minori Kaneko (2004) Kenkyusha's New Japanese-English Dictionary 5th edition, Tokyo: Kenkyūsha.
• “coolie. n.” in Nagayo Yanda (1998) Kenkyusha Dictionary Of Business English, Tokyo: Kenkyūsha.