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Yōsei
is a Japanese word that is generally synonymous with the English term . Today, this word usually refers to spirits from Western legends, but occasionally it may also denote a creature from native Japanese folklore. For example, according to an old folk belief from Iwate Prefecture, it was once feared that the ''yōsei'' could resurrect the dead. It is also mentioned that the people of Mt. Hōrai are small fairies that have no knowledge of great evil and so their hearts never grow old. The Ainu also tell of a race of small people known as the Koro-pok-guru in their folklore. Another fairy-like being from Japan is the Kijimuna, tree sprites told in the Ryukyuan religion of Okinawa is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi). Naha is the capital and largest city .... See also * * * References * * F ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Akinari Zeni-no-sei
Akinari (written: , or ) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese footballer *, Japanese writer and poet {{given name Japanese masculine given names ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ryukyuan Religion
The Ryukyuan religion (琉球信仰), Ryūkyū Shintō (琉球神道), Nirai Kanai Shinkō (ニライカナイ信仰), or Utaki Shinkō (御嶽信仰) is the indigenous belief system of the Ryukyu Islands. While specific legends and traditions may vary slightly from place to place and island to island, the Ryukyuan religion is generally characterized by ancestor worship and the respecting of relationships between the living, the dead, and the gods and spirits of the natural world. Some of its beliefs, such as those concerning '' genius loci'' spirits and many other beings classified between gods and humans, are indicative of its ancient animistic roots, as is its concern with , or life essence. Over time, Ryukyuan religious practice has been influenced by Japanese Shinto and Chinese religions (White Lotus, Manichaeism, Taoism, Confucianism, and folk beliefs) along with Christianity and Buddhism. One of its most ancient features is the belief , the spiritual superiority of women ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Japanese Mythology
Japanese mythology is a collection of traditional stories, folktales, and beliefs that emerged in the islands of the Japanese archipelago. Shinto and Buddhist traditions are the cornerstones of Japanese mythology. The history of thousands of years of contact with Korea, Ainu, and Okinawan myths are also key influences in Japanese mythology. Japanese myths are tied to the topography of the archipelago as well as agriculturally-based folk religion, and the Shinto pantheon holds countless ''kami'' (Japanese for " god(s)" or "spirits"). This article will discuss cosmogony, important deities, modern interpretations, cultural significance, and the influence of these myths. Two important sources for Japanese myths as they are recognized today are the ''Kojiki'' and the '' Nihon Shoki''. The ''Kojiki'', or "Record of Ancient Matters," is the oldest surviving account of Japan's myths, legends, and history. Additionally, the ''Shintōshū'' describes the origins of Japanese deities from ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Japanese Ghosts
Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspora, Japanese emigrants and their descendants around the world * Japanese citizens, nationals of Japan under Japanese nationality law ** Foreign-born Japanese, naturalized citizens of Japan * Japanese writing system, consisting of kanji and kana * Japanese cuisine, the food and food culture of Japan See also * List of Japanese people * * Japonica (other) * Japonicum * Japonicus * Japanese studies Japanese studies (Japanese: ) or Japan studies (sometimes Japanology in Europe), is a sub-field of area studies or East Asian studies involved in social sciences and humanities research on Japan. It incorporates fields such as the study of Japanese ... {{disambiguation Language and nationality disambiguation pages ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Japanese Folklore
Japanese folklore encompasses the informally learned folk traditions of Japan and the Japanese people as expressed in its oral traditions, customs, and material culture. In Japanese, the term is used to describe folklore. The academic study of folklore is known as . Folklorists also employ the term or to refer to the objects and arts they study. Folk religion Men dressed as namahage, wearing ogre-like masks and traditional straw capes (''mino'') make rounds of homes, in an annual ritual of the Oga Peninsula area of the Northeast region. These ogre-men masquerade as kami looking to instill fear in the children who are lazily idling around the fire. This is a particularly colorful example of folk practice still kept alive. A parallel custom is the secretive ritual of the Yaeyama Islands, Okinawa which does not allow itself to be photographed. Many, though increasingly fewer households maintain a kamidana or a small Shinto altar shelf. The Shinto version of the kitchen go ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fairies
A fairy (also fay, fae, fey, fair folk, or faerie) is a type of mythical being or legendary creature found in the folklore of multiple European cultures (including Celtic, Slavic, Germanic, English, and French folklore), a form of spirit, often described as metaphysical, supernatural, or preternatural. Myths and stories about fairies do not have a single origin, but are rather a collection of folk beliefs from disparate sources. Various folk theories about the origins of fairies include casting them as either demoted angels or demons in a Christian tradition, as deities in Pagan belief systems, as spirits of the dead, as prehistoric precursors to humans, or as spirits of nature. The label of ''fairy'' has at times applied only to specific magical creatures with human appearance, magical powers, and a penchant for trickery. At other times it has been used to describe any magical creature, such as goblins and gnomes. ''Fairy'' has at times been used as an adjective, with a m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kaii-Yōkai Denshō Database
The is a database of ''yōkai'' and mystery stories which have been collected from Japanese folklore. The database is published by International Research Center for Japanese Studies. The prototype was created on March 19, 2002, and the first live version was released on June 20, 2002. the project supervisor is Kazuhiko Komatsu ( 小松和彦), a Japanese folklorist who is a professor of the study of ''yōkai''. The database includes verbal information, without visual information. Data are collected from: * Akira Takeda ( 竹田旦) "''民俗学関係雑誌文献総覧''" 1978 * "''日本随筆大成''" 1975 - 1978 * Kunio Yanagita "''妖怪名彙''" * Books of histories of Japanese local governments. For each item, in the database has an abstract of around 100 characters. The full text is searchable, and the database can be searched by name or the region where the item was found. External links 怪異・妖怪伝承データベース- on International Research Center for Japa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Daijirin
is a comprehensive single-volume Japanese dictionary edited by , and first published by in 1988. This title is based upon two early Sanseidō dictionaries edited by Shōzaburō Kanazawa (金沢庄三郎, 1872–1967), ''Jirin'' (辞林 "Forest of words", 1907) and the revised ''Kōjirin'' (広辞林 "Wide forest of words", 1925). History Sanseido specifically created ''Daijirin'' to compete with Iwanami's profitable ''Kōjien'' dictionary, which was a longtime bestseller through three editions (1955, 1969, and 1983). Two other contemporary dictionaries directed at the ''Kōjien'' market share were Kōdansha's color-illustrated ''Nihongo Daijiten'' (日本語大辞典 "Great dictionary of Japanese", 1989) and Shōgakukan's ''Daijisen'' (大辞泉 "Great fountainhead of words", 1995, also edited by Akira Matsumura). The first edition of ''Daijirin'' (1988) had 220,000 headword entries and included encyclopedic content in numerous charts, tables, and illustrations. While ''Kōjien' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Okinawa Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi). Naha is the capital and largest city of Okinawa Prefecture, with other major cities including Okinawa, Uruma, and Urasoe. Okinawa Prefecture encompasses two thirds of the Ryukyu Islands, including the Okinawa, Daitō and Sakishima groups, extending southwest from the Satsunan Islands of Kagoshima Prefecture to Taiwan ( Hualien and Yilan Counties). Okinawa Prefecture's largest island, Okinawa Island, is the home to a majority of Okinawa's population. Okinawa Prefecture's indigenous ethnic group are the Ryukyuan people, who also live in the Amami Islands of Kagoshima Prefecture. Okinawa Prefecture was ruled by the Ryukyu Kingdom from 1429 and unofficially annexed by Japan after the Invasion of Ryukyu in 1609. Okinawa Prefecture was officially founded in 1879 by the Empire ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kijimuna
The Kijimuna ( Okinawan: , ''kijimunaa'', also ''kijimun'' 木の精), or Bunagaya, are creatures of the mythology native to the island of Okinawa. They are said to look around three or four years old and have red hair. About The kijimuna are small wood spirits according to Okinawan mythology. The kijimuna are said to live in trees, but the most common one is the 'gajumaru' or banyan tree. They are often described as being child-sized, with red hair covering their bodies and large heads. They are also known to be excellent fisherman, able to catch many fish, but then only eating one of the eyes of the fish before leaving the rest of it. The Kijimuna festival in Okinawa is named after them. Another name for the kijimuna is "bungaya," which means roughly "Large-Headed." The Kijimuna are known to be very mischievous, playing pranks and tricking humans. One of their best-known tricks is to lie upon a person's chest, making them unable to move or breathe. This is known as "kanashibar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Japanese Language
is spoken natively by about 128 million people, primarily by Japanese people and primarily in Japan, the only country where it is the national language. Japanese belongs to the Japonic or Japanese- Ryukyuan language family. There have been many attempts to group the Japonic languages with other families such as the Ainu, Austroasiatic, Koreanic, and the now-discredited Altaic, but none of these proposals has gained widespread acceptance. Little is known of the language's prehistory, or when it first appeared in Japan. Chinese documents from the 3rd century AD recorded a few Japanese words, but substantial Old Japanese texts did not appear until the 8th century. From the Heian period (794–1185), there was a massive influx of Sino-Japanese vocabulary into the language, affecting the phonology of Early Middle Japanese. Late Middle Japanese (1185–1600) saw extensive grammatical changes and the first appearance of European loanwords. The basis of the standard dialect moved f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Korpokkur
Korpokkur ( ain, コㇿポックㇽ; ja, コロポックル, translit=Koropokkuru), also written Koro-pok-kuru, korobokkuru, korbokkur, or koropokkur,Ainu-Grammatik, vol.2 Hans Adalbert Dettmer, O. Harrassowitz, 1997 koro-pok-guru, are a race of small people in folklore of the Ainu people of the northern Japanese islands. The name is traditionally analysed as a tripartite compound of ''kor'' (" butterbur plant"), ''pok'' ("under, below"), and ''kur'' ("person") and interpreted to mean "people below the leaves of the Fuki" in the Ainu language. The Ainu believe that the ''korpokkur'' were the people who lived in the Ainu's land before the Ainu themselves lived there. They were short of stature, agile, and skilled at fishing. They lived in pits with roofs made from butterbur leaves. Long ago, the ''korpokkur'' were on good terms with the Ainu, and would send them deer, fish, and other game and exchange goods with them. The little people hated to be seen, however, so they would st ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
