Kun'yomi
Kanji reading based on the native Japanese pronunciation
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Kun'yomi (訓読み, kun'yomi; [kɯɰ̃.jo.mi], lit. "explanatory reading") is a way of reading a kanji in which the character is associated with a native Japanese word of corresponding meaning. It contrasts with on'yomi, readings derived from historical Chinese pronunciations of the character.[1][2][3][4] The related term kundoku (訓読) can also refer more broadly to reading a kanbun text according to Japanese word order and grammar.
Kun readings frequently occur in native Japanese words written with a single kanji or with okurigana, while on readings are common in Sino-Japanese compounds. These are tendencies rather than rules: compounds may use kun readings or mix on and kun readings.[4]
Formation
When Chinese characters were adopted for writing Japanese, they were used both for their sounds and to represent Japanese words with corresponding meanings. Such meaning-based associations are attested by about the fifth or sixth century. Early mappings were variable: a character could be associated with several Japanese words, and conventions became more fixed over time.[5]
Forms and usage
A single character may represent an uninflected word, as in 山 (やま, yama, "mountain"). With inflecting words, the character commonly represents part of the stem and following kana, called okurigana, represent inflectional material, as in 書く (かく, kaku, "to write") and 高い (たかい, takai, "high"). Japan's official guidance treats uninflected words, inflecting words, compounds, exceptions, and permitted variants separately.[6]
The relation between characters and native words is not one-to-one. A character may have several kun readings, while a Japanese word may be written with different characters according to meaning. The latter phenomenon is called 異字同訓 ("different characters, same kun reading"). For example, なおす (naosu) is written 治す when referring to curing an illness and 直す when referring to repairing or correcting something.[7]
Because kun readings represent Japanese words rather than adaptations of a single Chinese syllable, they may extend over several morae. In inflecting words, the kanji generally represents part of the lexical stem and the following okurigana indicate inflectional or derivational material. The okurigana belong to the written word but are not treated as part of the character's reading in dictionary listings.[4][6]
A character can have more than one kun reading. The 2010 Jōyō kanji table, for example, lists 東 with the on reading tō and the kun readings higashi and azuma. By contrast, it lists the unit character 寸 with the reading sun and no standard kun reading, although historical dictionaries record rare glosses.[8][9][10]
When several kanji can write the same Japanese word, their use may be differentiated by meaning or convention. The distinction is not always absolute: official guidance notes that more than one character may sometimes be acceptable, that one spelling may have a narrower range than another, and that kana are used where no suitable kanji exists or kanji would be inappropriate.[7] The word moto illustrates the pattern: the guidance distinguishes 下, 元, 本, and 基 according to meaning and use.[7] The word sakazuki ("sake cup") is commonly written 杯 or its variant 盃.[11]
Compounds and special assignments
Compounds may combine kun readings, as in 山道 (やまみち, yamamichi, "mountain path"), or combine on and kun readings. A reading assigned to an entire multi-character word rather than separately to each character is called jukujikun; examples include 昨日 (きのう, kinō), 大人 (おとな, otona), and 五月雨 (さみだれ, samidare).[12][8]
In early texts, especially the Man'yōshū, a contextual meaning could be assigned an ad hoc reading rather than an established character reading; this is called 義訓 (gikun). Examples include 暖 read はる (haru, "spring") and 玄黄 read あめつち (ametsuchi, "heaven and earth").[13]
Most kokuji, characters created in Japan, have kun readings and no on reading. Exceptions include characters with both types, such as 働 with kun hataraki and on dō, and characters conventionally listed with only an on reading, such as 腺 sen.[14]
Long readings
Some kun readings extend over five morae. The Jōyō table lists 承る uketamawaru, 志 kokorozashi, and 詔 mikotonori.[8] Their long forms reflect the histories of the underlying Japanese words: dictionaries derive uketamawaru from 受け賜る, kokorozashi from the nominalized verb 志す (historically 心指す), and mikotonori from 御言宣.[15][16][17]
A Jōyō character may also have non-Jōyō readings; for example, the official table lists 慮 only with ryo, while dictionaries also record 慮る omonpakaru.[8][18]
Modern standards and names
The 2010 Jōyō kanji table gives the principal character readings used as a guide for writing modern Japanese in general social life. Its main table lists on and kun readings and examples, while its appendix lists established whole-word readings such as jukujikun.[8]
Personal names may use special readings called 名乗り訓 (nanori-kun) that differ from ordinary Jōyō readings; for example, 朝 may be read とも (tomo) in a name.[19]
Kungana
Kungana (訓仮名) are Man'yōgana in which a character's kun reading is used phonographically, without regard to the character's meaning.[20] For example:
- natsu (夏) + kashi (樫) → natsukashi (夏樫; kun'yomi of 懐かし 'evoking nostalgia')
- na (名) + tsu (津) + ka (蚊) + shi (為) → natsukashi (名津蚊為; kun'yomi of 懐かし 'evoking nostalgia')
- kaki (垣) + tsu (津) + pata (旗) → kakitsubata (垣津旗; kun'yomi of 杜若 'Japanese iris')