半濁音

Japanese

Kanji in this term
半	濁	音
はん Grade: 2	だく Grade: S	おん Grade: 1
on’yomi	kan’yōon	goon

Etymology

半 (“semi-”) +‎ 濁音

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) はんだく​おん [hàńdákúꜜòǹ] (Nakadaka – [4])
• (Tokyo) はんだ​くおん [hàńdáꜜkùòǹ] (Nakadaka – [3])
• IPA^(key): [hã̠nda̠kɯ̟ᵝõ̞ɴ]

Noun

半(はん)濁(だく)音(おん) • (handakuon) 

1. (traditional Japanese phonology) a mora of the ぱ行 (pagyō, “pa-row”), with the onset obstruent /p/

   Hypernym: 熟音

   • 1893 March, 宗司 大宮, “第三章　　濁音　半濁音及その文字 [Chapter 3: Muddy Sounds, Semi-Muddy Sounds and How to Write Them]”, in 日本辭林 [A Japanese Dictionary], Tokyo: Hakubunkan, page 11:

     半濁音とは、本音を半濁りて呼ぶものにて、子音の中、波行の五音のみに限れり。この音を示すには、本音の假字の肩に、圈點一個を加ふ。卽ち、左の如し。

     Handakuon to wa, hon’on o hannigorite yobu mono nite, shion no naka, hagyō no goon nomi ni kagireri. Kono on o shimesu ni wa, hon’on no kana no kata ni, kenten ikko o kuwau. Sunawachi, hidari no gotoshi.

     Semi-muddy sounds are the five base child sounds of, specifically, the ha-row, being partially muddied up when they are pronounced. To note these sounds, a circle is added on the shoulders of the kana for the base sounds, as shown on the left.

   • 1902, Hirano, Hidekichi, “第十九章　　淸音濁音半濁音 [Chapter 19: Clear Sounds, Muddy Sounds and Semi-Muddy Sounds]”, in 國語聲音學 [The Phonetics of the National Language], 國光社, page 152:

     濁音がある故に、之に對して淸音をも作らねばならず、半濁音（次淸音）と云ふものもあることになる。
     ぱ　ぴ　ぷ　ぺ　ぽ
     の一行五音の半濁音（一名次淸音）として、アカサタナハマヤラワ十行五十音が淸音と云はれて居る。

     Dakuon ga aru yue ni, kore ni taishite seion o mo tsukarane ba narazu, handakuon (jiseion) to iu mono mo aru koto ni naru.
     pa pi pu pe po
     no ichigyō goon no handakuon (ichimei jiseion) to shite, a ka sa ta na ha ma ya ra wa jūgyō gojūon ga seion to iwarete iru.

     Since there are muddy sounds, it follows that there must also be the opposite, ‘clear sounds’, and additionally what are known as ‘semi-muddy sounds’ (‘quasi-clear sounds’). These five sounds, arranged in one row, are known as ‘semi-muddy sounds’ (i.e. ‘quasi-clear sounds’):
     pa pi pu pe po
     Then, the fifty sounds arranged in ten rows, a, ka, sa, ta, na, ha, ma, ya, ra and wa, are called ‘clear sounds’.

   • 1905 June, 黃山 片岡, “半濁音の符 [Noting Semi-Muddy Sounds]”, in 黃山著作集, Saitama: Suharaya, page 26:

     半濁音は、假字の右肩に一箇の圈點（゜）を附して、半濁音の符となす、次ぎの例を見る可し、

     handakuon wa, kana no migikata ni ikko no kenten (゜) o fushite, handakuon no fu to nasu, tsugi no rei o miru beshi,

     A ‘semi-muddy sound’ is noted by attaching a circle (゜) to the right shoulder of a kana, as seen in the following examples,

Table of semi-voiced hiragana

あ	い	う	え	お
ぱ	ぴ	ぷ	ぺ	ぽ

See also

• 半(はん)濁(だく)点(てん) (handakuten)
• 濁(だく)音(おん) (dakuon)
• 清(せい)音(おん) (seion)