Nyōbō kotoba
Nyōbō kotoba (Japanese: 女房言葉 or 女房詞, lit. 'woman's words') was a cant that was originally used by Japanese court ladies during the Muromachi era, and subsequently spread and came to be thought of as a general women's language. It consisted primarily of a special vocabulary of words for food, clothing, and other household items.[1] Many of the created words were descriptions of the thing they were naming, whether that was a description of a characteristic, shape, color, or usage.
Many nyōbō kotoba words were formed by adding the prefix o- (御), which indicates politeness,[2] or by dropping part of a word and adding -moji (文字, lit. 'character, letter').
Some nyōbō kotoba passed into general usage and are today part of the standard Japanese language.
Examples
| Nyōbō kotoba | Meaning | Source |
|---|---|---|
| ishiishi (いしいし) | dango | |
| okowa (おこわ) | rice with red beans | kowameshi (強飯) |
| okawa (おかわ) | toilet | kawaya (厠) |
| onaka (お腹) | stomach | naka (中, 'middle') |
| onara (おなら) | fart (n.) | narasu (鳴らす, 'to sound') |
| okaka (おかか) | dried bonito flakes | katsuobushi (鰹節) |
| okaki (おかき) | kakimochi (type of rice cracker) | kakimochi (欠餅) |
| okabe (お壁) | tofu | shirakabe (白壁, lit. 'white plaster wall') |
| okumoji (奥文字) | wife | okusama (奥様) |
| osatsu (おさつ) | sweet potato | satsuma-imo (薩摩芋, lit. 'Satsuma potato') |
| odai (お台) | cooked rice; food | odai (お台, 'dining table') |
| otsuke (おつけ) | clear soup broth, miso soup | |
| onigiri (おにぎり) | rice ball | nigirimeshi (握り飯) |
| oman (お饅) | steamed bun with filling | manjuu (饅頭) |
| oyoru (御寝る) | to sleep (v.) | oyoru (お夜, 'sleep, rest (n.)') |
| kamoji (髢) | hair | kami (髪) |
| komoji (こもじ) | carp | koi (鯉) |
| shamoji (しゃもじ) | rice scoop | shakushi (杓子) |
| sumoji (すもじ), osumoji (おすもじ) | sushi | sushi (寿司) |
| make (まけ) | menstrual period | |
| naminohana (波の花) | salt | naminohana (波の花, lit. 'crest of a wave') |
| nimoji (にもじ) | garlic | ninniku (大蒜) |
| hitomoji (一文字) | spring onion | |
| yumoji (ゆもじ) | yukata (type of summer kimono) | yukata (浴衣) |
References
- Nicolae, Raluca (2014). "An Historical Perspective on Women's Speech in Japanese". Journal of Research in Gender Studies. 4 (2): 236–250.
- Ide, Sachiko (1982). "Japanese sociolinguistics politeness and women's language". Lingua. 57: 357–385. doi:10.1016/0024-3841(82)90009-2.