生日

Chinese

		to be born; to give birth; life to be born; to give birth; life; to grow; student; raw	day; sun; date day; sun; date; day of the month; Japan (abbrev.)
simp. and trad. (生日)		生	日

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Standard)

  (Pinyin): shēngrì

  (Zhuyin): ㄕㄥ ㄖˋ

  (Dungan, Cyrillic and Wiktionary): сынжы (sɨnřɨ, I-II)

• Cantonese (Jyutping): saang¹ jat⁶

• Gan (Wiktionary): sen¹ liit
• Hakka

  (Sixian, PFS): sâng-ngit

  (Meixian, Guangdong): sang¹ ngid⁵

• Jin (Wiktionary): seng¹ reh⁴
• Northern Min (KCR): sáng-nì
• Eastern Min (BUC): săng-nĭk
• Southern Min

  (Hokkien, POJ): siⁿ-li̍t / seⁿ-ji̍t / siⁿ-ji̍t / seng-ji̍t

  (Teochew, Peng'im): sên¹ rig⁸

  (Leizhou, Leizhou Pinyin): se¹ yieg⁸

• Wu (Wugniu)
  • (Northern): ¹san-gniq / ¹san-gniq₈ / ¹san-gniq₀ / ¹sen-zeq
  • (Jinhua): ¹saon-gniq₈
• Xiang

  (Changsha, Wiktionary): sen¹ ri⁶

  (Loudi, Wiktionary): sonn¹ ni^4*

  (Hengyang, Wiktionary): sen¹ xi²

---

• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: shēngrì → shēngri (toneless final syllable variant)
    • Zhuyin: ㄕㄥ ㄖˋ → ㄕㄥ ˙ㄖ (toneless final syllable variant)
    • Tongyong Pinyin: shengri̊h
    • Wade–Giles: shêng¹-jih⁵
    • Yale: shēng-r
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: sheng.ryh
    • Palladius: шэнжи (šɛnži)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ʂɤŋ⁵⁵ ʐ̩⁵¹/ → /ʂɤŋ⁵⁵ ʐ̩²/
  • (Dungan)
    • Cyrillic and Wiktionary: сынжы (sɨnřɨ, I-II)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /səŋ²⁴ ʐ̩⁵¹/

    (Note: Dungan pronunciation is currently experimental and may be inaccurate.)

• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: saang¹ jat⁶
    • Yale: sāang yaht
    • Cantonese Pinyin: saang¹ jat⁹
    • Guangdong Romanization: sang¹ yed⁶
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /saːŋ⁵⁵ jɐt̚²/
• Gan
  • (Nanchang)
    • Wiktionary: sen¹ liit
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /sɛn⁴² lɨt̚²/
• Hakka
  • (Sixian, incl. Miaoli and Meinong)
    • Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: sâng-ngit
    • Hakka Romanization System: sang´ ngid`
    • Hagfa Pinyim: sang¹ ngid⁵
    • Sinological IPA: /saŋ²⁴ ŋit̚²/
  • (Meixian)
    • Guangdong: sang¹ ngid⁵
    • Sinological IPA: /saŋ⁴⁴⁻³⁵ ŋit̚¹/
• Jin
  • (Taiyuan)⁺
    • Wiktionary: seng¹ reh⁴
    • Sinological IPA (old-style): /sə̃ŋ¹¹ ʐəʔ²/
• Northern Min
  • (Jian'ou)
    • Kienning Colloquial Romanized: sáng-nì
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /saŋ⁵⁴ ni⁴²/
• Eastern Min
  • (Fuzhou)
    • Bàng-uâ-cê: săng-nĭk
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /saŋ⁵⁵ nˡiʔ⁵/
• Southern Min
  • (Hokkien: Xiamen, Quanzhou, Taipei)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: siⁿ-li̍t
    • Tâi-lô: sinn-li̍t
    • Phofsit Daibuun: svilit
    • IPA (Xiamen): /sĩ⁴⁴⁻²² lit̚⁴/
    • IPA (Taipei): /sĩ⁴⁴⁻³³ lit̚⁴/
    • IPA (Quanzhou): /sĩ³³ lit̚²⁴/
  • (Hokkien: Zhangzhou, Kaohsiung)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: seⁿ-ji̍t
    • Tâi-lô: senn-ji̍t
    • Phofsit Daibuun: svejit
    • IPA (Kaohsiung): /sẽ⁴⁴⁻³³ zit̚⁴/
    • IPA (Zhangzhou): /sɛ̃⁴⁴⁻²² d͡zit̚¹²¹/
  • (Hokkien: variant in Taiwan)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: siⁿ-ji̍t
    • Tâi-lô: sinn-ji̍t
    • Phofsit Daibuun: svijit
    • IPA (Kaohsiung): /sĩ⁴⁴⁻³³ zit̚⁴/
  • (Hokkien: variant in Taiwan)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: seng-ji̍t
    • Tâi-lô: sing-ji̍t
    • Phofsit Daibuun: sengjit
    • IPA (Kaohsiung): /siɪŋ⁴⁴⁻³³ zit̚⁴/
  • (Teochew)
    • Peng'im: sên¹ rig⁸
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī-like: seⁿ ji̍k
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /sẽ³³⁻²³ d͡zik̚⁴/
  • (Leizhou)
    • Leizhou Pinyin: se¹ yieg⁸
    • Sinological IPA: /sɛ³⁵⁻³³ ziek̚²/
• Wu
  • (Northern: Shanghai, Suzhou)
    • Wugniu: ¹san-gniq
    • MiniDict: san^平 nyih
    • Wiktionary Romanisation (Shanghai): ¹san-nyiq
    • Sinological IPA (Shanghai): /sã⁵⁵ n̠ʲiɪʔ²¹/
    • Sinological IPA (Suzhou): /sã⁴⁴ n̠ʲiɪʔ/
  • (Northern: Chongming)
    • Wugniu: ¹san-gniq₈
    • MiniDict: san^平 nyih^入
    • Sinological IPA (Chongming): /sã⁵⁵ ʔn̠ʲiəʔ⁵/
  • (Northern: Ningbo)
    • Wugniu: ¹san-gniq₀
    • MiniDict: san^平 nyih
    • Sinological IPA (Ningbo): /sã³³ n̠ʲiɪʔ⁴⁴/
  • (Northern: Hangzhou)
    • Wugniu: ¹sen-zeq
    • MiniDict: sen^平 zeh
    • Sinological IPA (Hangzhou): /sen³³ zəʔ³⁴/
  • (Jinhua)
    • Wugniu: ¹saon-gniq₈
    • Sinological IPA (Jinhua): /sɑŋ³³ n̠ʲiəʔ²¹²/
• Xiang
  • (Changsha)
    • Wiktionary: sen¹ ri⁶
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /sən³³ ʐi²⁴/
  • (Loudi)
    • Wiktionary: sonn¹ ni^4*
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /sɔ̃⁴⁴ ni³⁵⁻⁵/
  • (Hengyang)
    • Wiktionary: sen¹ xi²
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /se̞n⁴⁴⁵ ʑ̊i¹¹/

---

• Middle Chinese: sraeng nyit

Rime
Character	生	日
Reading #	1/2	1/1
Initial (聲)	生 (21)	日 (38)
Final (韻)	庚 (109)	質 (48)
Tone (調)	Level (Ø)	Checked (Ø)
Openness (開合)	Open	Open
Division (等)	II	III
Fanqie	所庚切	人質切
Baxter	sraeng	nyit
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/ʃˠæŋ/	/ȵiɪt̚/
Pan Wuyun	/ʃᵚaŋ/	/ȵit̚/
Shao Rongfen	/ʃaŋ/	/ȵʑjet̚/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/ʂaɨjŋ/	/ȵit̚/
Li Rong	/ʃɐŋ/	/ȵiĕt̚/
Wang Li	/ʃɐŋ/	/ȵʑĭĕt̚/
Bernard Karlgren	/ʂɐŋ/	/ȵʑi̯ĕt̚/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	shēng	rì
Expected Cantonese Reflex	sang1	jat6

• Old Chinese

  (Baxter–Sagart): /*sreŋ|sreŋ  C.nik/

  (Zhengzhang): /*sʰleːŋ|sreŋs  njiɡ/

Baxter–Sagart system 1.1 (2014)
Character	生	生	日
Reading #	1/3	3/3	1/1
Modern Beijing (Pinyin)	shēng	shēng	rì
Middle Chinese	‹ sræng ›	‹ srjæng ›	‹ nyit ›
Old Chinese	/*sreŋ/ (MC srj- > sr-; or *s.reŋ ?)	/*sreŋ/ (or *s.reŋ ?)	/*C.nik/
English	bear, be born; live	bear, be born; live	sun; day
Notes for Old Chinese notations in the Baxter–Sagart system: * Parentheses "()" indicate uncertain presence; * Square brackets "[]" indicate uncertain identity, e.g. *[t] as coda may in fact be *-t or *-p; * Angle brackets "<>" indicate infix; * Hyphen "-" indicates morpheme boundary; * Period "." indicates syllable boundary.

Zhengzhang system (2003)
Character	生	生	日
Reading #	1/2	2/2	1/1
No.	11312	11322	10845
Phonetic component	生	生	日
Rime group	耕	耕	質
Rime subdivision	0	0	2
Corresponding MC rime	生	生	日
Old Chinese	/*sʰleːŋ/	/*sreŋs/	/*njiɡ/

Noun

生日

1. birthday

   自然生日或政治生日 [MSC, trad. and simp.]

   zìrán shēngrì huò zhèngzhì shēngrì [Pinyin]

   natural birthdays and political birthdays

   這是我特意為你生日而做的。 [MSC, trad.]
   这是我特意为你生日而做的。 [MSC, simp.]

   Zhè shì wǒ tèyì wèi nǐ shēngrì ér zuò de. [Pinyin]

   I made this specially for your birthday.

Synonyms

• 千春 (qiānchūn) (literary, of an elderly person)
• 千秋 (qiānqiū) (honorific, of an elderly person)
• 壽誕／寿诞 (shòudàn) (of an elderly person)
• 壽辰／寿辰 (shòuchén) (of an elderly person)
• 生朝 (shēngzhāo) (literary)
• 生辰 (shēngchén) (literary)
• 誕辰／诞辰 (dànchén) (honorific)
• 賤降／贱降 (jiànjiàng) (literary, humble)

 

Dialectal synonyms of 生日 (“birthday”) [map]

Variety	Location	Words edit
Classical Chinese		生日, 生辰, 生朝
Formal (Written Standard Chinese)		生日, 生辰
Northeastern Mandarin	Beijing	生日
	Taiwan	生日
	Langfang	生日
	Chifeng	生日
	Hulunbuir (Hailar)	生日
	Harbin	生日
	Shenyang	生日, 生辰
	Malaysia	生日
	Singapore	生日
Jilu Mandarin	Tianjin	生日
	Tangshan	生日
	Cangzhou	生日
	Baoding	生日
	Shijiazhuang	生日
	Jinan	生日
Jiaoliao Mandarin	Yantai (Muping)	生日
	Qingdao	生日
Central Plains Mandarin	Luoyang	生兒
	Daming	生兒
	Wanrong	生兒, 生日
	Zhengzhou	生兒
	Xi'an	生兒
	Xining	生日, 壽日
	Xuzhou	生兒, 生日
	Sokuluk (Gansu Dungan)	生日, 生日兒
Lanyin Mandarin	Yinchuan	生日
	Lanzhou	生日
	Ürümqi	生日, 歲歲子
Southwestern Mandarin	Chengdu	生
	Chongqing	生日
	Wuhan	生日, 生期
	Guiyang	生日, 生, 尾巴
	Kunming	生日
	Guilin	生日
	Liuzhou	生日
Jianghuai Mandarin	Nanjing	生日
	Yangzhou	生日
	Nantong	生日
	Hefei	生日
Cantonese	Guangzhou	生日, 牛一
	Hong Kong	生日, 牛一
	Hong Kong (Kam Tin Weitou)	生日
	Macau	生日, 牛一
	Guangzhou (Panyu)	生日
	Guangzhou (Huashan, Huadu)	生日
	Guangzhou (Conghua)	生日
	Guangzhou (Zengcheng)	生日
	Foshan	生日
	Foshan (Shatou, Nanhai)	生日
	Foshan (Shunde)	生日
	Foshan (Sanshui)	生日
	Foshan (Mingcheng, Gaoming)	生日
	Zhongshan (Shiqi)	生日
	Zhuhai (Qianshan)	生日
	Zhuhai (Doumen, Shangheng Tanka)	生日
	Zhuhai (Doumen)	生日, 牛屙屎
	Jiangmen (Baisha)	生日
	Jiangmen (Xinhui)	生日
	Taishan	生日
	Kaiping (Chikan)	生日, 牛屙屎
	Enping (Niujiang)	生日
	Heshan (Yayao)	生日
	Dongguan	生日
	Shenzhen (Shajing, Bao'an)	生日
	Shaoguan	生日
	Kuala Lumpur (Guangfu)	生日
	Penang (Guangfu)	生日, 牛一
	Singapore (Guangfu)	生日
Gan	Nanchang	生日
	Lichuan	生日
	Pingxiang	生日
Hakka	Meixian	生日
	Huizhou (Huicheng Bendihua)	生日, 牛一
	Dongguan (Qingxi)	生日
	Shenzhen (Shatoujiao)	生日
	Zhongshan (Nanlang Heshui)	生日
	Guangzhou (Lütian, Conghua)	生日
	Yudu	生日
	Miaoli (N. Sixian)	生日
	Pingtung (Neipu; S. Sixian)	生日
	Hsinchu County (Zhudong; Hailu)	生日
	Taichung (Dongshi; Dabu)	生日
	Hsinchu County (Qionglin; Raoping)	生日
	Yunlin (Lunbei; Zhao'an)	生日
Huizhou	Jixi	生日
	Shexian	生日
Jin	Taiyuan	生兒, 生日
	Pingyao	生日
	Xinzhou	生兒
	Linhe	生兒
	Jining	生日
	Hohhot	生兒
	Zhangjiakou	生日
	Handan	生兒, 生日
Eastern Min	Fuzhou	生日
Southern Min	Xiamen	生日
	Quanzhou	生日
	Zhangzhou	生日
	Taipei	生日
	Kaohsiung	生日
	Penang (Hokkien)	生日
	Singapore (Hokkien)	生日
	Manila (Hokkien)	生日
	Chaozhou	生日
	Singapore (Teochew)	生日
	Wenchang	生日
	Haikou	生日
	Singapore (Hainanese)	生日
Zhongshan Min	Shaxi (Longdu)	生日
	Sanxiang	生日
Southern Pinghua	Nanning (Tingzi)	生日, 牛一
Wu	Shanghai	生日
	Shanghai (Chongming)	生日
	Suzhou	生日
	Danyang	生日
	Hangzhou	生日
	Ningbo	生日
	Wenzhou	生日, 生日日
	Jinhua	生日
Xiang	Changsha	生日
	Loudi	生日

Derived terms

• 做生日 (zuòshēngrì)
• 生日卡 (shēngrìkǎ)
• 生日宴會／生日宴会 (shēngrì yànhuì)
• 生日快樂／生日快乐 (shēngrì kuàilè)
• 生日會／生日会 (shēngrìhuì)
• 生日派對／生日派对 (shēngrì pàiduì)
• 生日聚會／生日聚会 (shēngrì jùhuì)
• 生日蛋糕 (shēngrì dàngāo)
• 生日趴 (shēngrìpā)
• 生日趴體／生日趴体 (shēngrì pātǐ)

 

Descendants

Sino-Xenic (生日):

• → Japanese: 生日(せいじつ) (seijitsu)
• → Korean: 생일(生日) (saeng'il)
• → Vietnamese: sinh nhật (生日)

Verb

生⫽日 (verb-object)

1. (chiefly Cantonese, informal) to have one's birthday; to celebrate one's birthday

   • 幾日前你都係咁同我講，仲有呀，你媽媽前日咪生咗日囉。 [Cantonese, trad.]
     几日前你都系咁同我讲，仲有呀，你妈妈前日咪生咗日啰。 [Cantonese, simp.]

     From: 2012, 游欣妮, 《我搣時太心軟》 [Miss Yan Ni 2], page 86

     gei² jat⁶ cin⁴ nei⁵ dou¹ hai⁶ gam² tung⁴ ngo⁵ gong², zung⁶ jau⁵ aa³, nei⁵ maa^1-4 maa¹ cin⁴ jat⁶ mai⁶ saang¹ zo² jat⁶ lo¹. [Jyutping]

     You were saying that a few days ago. Also, your mom already had her birthday the day before yesterday.

Japanese

Etymology 1

Kanji in this term
生	日
い(く) Grade: 1	ひ Grade: 1
kun’yomi

Compound of 生く (iku, “to exist, live”, archaic) +‎ 日 (hi, “day”).

Noun

生(いく)日(ひ) • (ikuhi) 

1. a lucky day, auspicious day

   Synonym: 吉日 (kichijitsu)

Derived terms

• 生(いく)日(ひ)の足(たる)日(ひ) (ikuhi no taruhi)

Etymology 2

Kanji in this term
生	日
せい Grade: 1	じつ Grade: 1
kan’on

First appeared in 1867.

Possibly borrowed from Chinese 生日 (shēngrì). (Can this⁽⁺⁾ etymology be sourced?)

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) せーじつ [sèéjítsú] (Heiban – [0])
• IPA^(key): [se̞ːʑit͡sɨᵝ]

Noun

生(せい)日(じつ) • (seijitsu) 

1. (rare) one's birthday

   Synonyms: 生辰 (seishin), 誕生日 (tanjōbi), 誕辰 (tanshin)

Korean

Hanja in this term
生	日

Noun

生日 • (saeng'il) (hangeul 생일)

1. Hanja form^? of 생일 (“birthday”).

Okinawan

Etymology 1

Kanji in this term
生	日
っん(まり) Grade: 1	ふぃー > びー Grade: 1
kun’yomi

Alternative spelling
生まり日

Cognate with Japanese 生まれ日 (umarebi, literally “birth-day”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ʔm̩maɾibiː/

Noun

生(っんまり)日(びー) ('nmaribī) 

1. birthday

Derived terms

• 生日(っんまりびー)かりゆしやいびーん ('nmaribī kariyushi yaibīn)

Etymology 2

Kanji in this term
生	日
う(まり) Grade: 1	ふぃー > びー Grade: 1
kun’yomi

Alternative spelling
生まり日

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ʔumaɾibiː/

Noun

生(うまり)日(びー) (umaribī) 

1. birthday

References

• “っんまりびー・ぅんまりびー【生日・生まり日】” in JLect - Japonic Languages and Dialects Database Dictionary, 2019.
• “ぅんまりびー” in Okinawan Dictionary - KozaWeb.
• “ゥンマリビー” in Okinawa Center of Language Study, Shuri-Naha Dialect Dictionary (archived; reopens 2024).
• “ウマリビー” in Okinawa Center of Language Study, Shuri-Naha Dialect Dictionary (archived; reopens 2024).
• National Institute for Japanese Language and Linguistics (2001 [1963]) 沖縄語辞典 (Okinawa-go Jiten) [Dictionary of the Okinawan Language] (in Japanese), Tokyo (東京): Zaimushō Insatsu Kyoku (財務省印刷局)

Vietnamese

chữ Hán Nôm in this term
生	日

Noun

生日

1. chữ Hán form of sinh nhật (“birthday”).