平仮名

Japanese

Kanji in this term
平	仮	名
ひら Grade: 3	か > が Grade: 5	な Grade: 1
kun’yomi

Alternative spelling
平假名 (kyūjitai)

Etymology

Compound of 平 (hira, “flat, smooth”) +‎ 仮名 (kana). The kana changes to gana as an instance of rendaku (連濁).

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) ひらが​な [hìrágáꜜnà] (Nakadaka – [3])
• (Tokyo) ひらがな [hìrágáná] (Heiban – [0])
• (Tokyo) ひらがな​ [hìrágánáꜜ] (Odaka – [4])
• IPA^(key): [çiɾa̠ɡa̠na̠]

Noun

平(ひら)仮(が)名(な) • (hiragana) 

1. hiragana, a Japanese syllabary script
   • 1603–1604, Nippo Jisho (page 242)

     Firagana. ヒラガナ (平仮名) 日本の文字の一種.

Synonyms

• (now rare) 女(おんな)手(で) (onnade), 女(おんな)文(も)字(じ) (onnamoji), 草(そう)仮(が)名(な) (sōgana)

See also

• 漢(かん)字(じ) (kanji)
• 片(かた)仮(か)名(な) (katakana)
• 万(まん)葉(よう)仮(が)名(な) (man'yōgana)
• ローマ字(じ) (rōmaji)

References

• Doi, Tadao (1603–1604) Hōyaku Nippo Jisho (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Iwanami Shoten, published 1980, →ISBN.