天王

Chinese
day; sky; heaven king; Wang (proper name)
simp. and trad.
(天王)		 天 王

Pronunciation

Noun

天王

  1. (chiefly historical) the son of heaven; emperor
  2. (historical) Heavenly King (title for Hong Xiuquan, the head of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom)
  3. Name for deities in the Chinese folk religion or some religions.
  4. one who is extraordinary or excellent; king; master; superstar; idol

Usage notes

This term originally gained popularity during the Spring and Autumn Period in reference to the Zhou kings. Later on, the term 天子 (tiānzǐ) gradually gained more favor.

Derived terms
  • 天王老子
  • 托塔天王
  • 托塔李天王
  • 童天王

Proper noun

天王

  1. (～村) Tianwang (a village in Xinshi, Jingshan, Jingmen, Hubei, China)

Japanese

Etymology
Kanji in this term
天 王
てん
Grade: 1		 おう > のう
Grade: 1
on’yomi

The ō reading for 王 changes to nō as an instance of renjō (連声).

Pronunciation

Noun

天王 (hiragana てんのう, rōmaji tennō, historical hiragana てんわう)

  1. (Buddhism) heavenly king

References
  1. 1998, NHK日本語発音アクセント辞典 (NHK Japanese Pronunciation Accent Dictionary) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: NHK, →ISBN
  2. 2006, 大辞林 (Daijirin), Third Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN
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