ほととぎす

ほととぎす

Japanese

Etymology 1

Alternative spellings
子規 時鳥 杜宇 杜鵑 田鵑 蜀魂 郭公 不如帰

ほととぎす (hototogisu): a print of a flying lesser cuckoo by Utagawa Hiroshige.

From Old Japanese.

The final su is most likely す (su, “bird”, ancient term only found in old compounds), itself possibly cognate with Korean 새 (sae, “bird”).

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) ほとと​ぎす [hòtótóꜜgìsù] (Nakadaka – [3])[1]
• IPA^(key): [ho̞to̞to̞ɡʲisɨᵝ]

Noun

ほととぎす or ホトトギス • (hototogisu) 

1. the lesser cuckoo, Cuculus poliocephalus
   • 1187, Senzai Wakashū (book 3, poem 161; also Hyakunin Isshu, poem 81)

     ほととぎす鳴(な)きつる方(かた)をながむればただ有明(ありあけ)の月(つき)ぞ残(のこ)れる

     hototogisu nakitsuru kata o nagamureba tada ariake no tsuki zo nokoreru

     When I gaze in the direction of the crying cuckoo, only the moon lingers in the dawn.[2]

   Synonyms: 卯月鳥 (uzukidori), 沓手鳥 (kutsutedori), 時つ鳥 (tokitsudori), 時の鳥 (toki no tori)

   Hypernym: 郭公 (kakkō)

Derived terms

Derived terms

• 杜鵑草(ホトトギス) (hototogisu, “toad lily”)
• 杜鵑(ホトトギス)貝(ガイ) (hototogisugai)
• 時鳥(ほととぎす)と兄(きょう)弟(だい) (Hototogisu to Kyōdai)
• 時鳥(ホトトギス)草(ソウ) (hototogisusō)
• ただ取(と)り山(やま)の時鳥(ほととぎす) (tada tori yama no hototogisu)
• 鳴(な)かぬなら鳴(な)くまで待(ま)とう時鳥(ほととぎす) (nakanunara naku made matō hototogisu)
• 目(め)には青(あお)葉(ば)山(やま)時鳥(ほととぎす)初(はつ)松魚(がつお) (me ni wa Aoba-yama hototogisu hatsugatsuo)
• 山(やま)ほととぎす (yama-hototogisu)

Proverbs

• あの声(こえ)で蜥蜴(とかげ)くらうかほととぎす (ano koe de tokage kurau ka hototogisu)
• 鶯(うぐいす)の卵(かいご)の中(なか)のほととぎす (uguisu no kaigo no naka no hototogisu)
• 子(こ)で子(こ)にならぬほととぎす (ko de ko ni naranu hototogisu)

Etymology 2

For pronunciation and definitions of ほととぎす – see the following entry.

【杜鵑草】 [noun] the toad lily, Tricyrtis hirta Alternative spellings 時鳥草, 油点草, ホトトギス

(This term, ほととぎす, is an alternative spelling of the above term.)

References

1. 2006, 大辞林 (Daijirin), Third Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN
2. Haruo Shirane (1998) Traces of Dreams: Landscape, Cultural Memory, and the Poetry of Bashō, illustrated edition, Stanford University Press, →ISBN, page 208

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Old Japanese

Etymology

From ほととぎ (poto₂to₂gi₁, onomatopoeic imitation of the bird's cry) +‎ す (-su, suffix representing birds).

Noun

ほととぎす (poto₂to₂gi₁su)

1. the lesser cuckoo, Cuculus poliocephalus
2. (poetic) allusion to 飛幡 (To₁bata, a placename)
   • c. 759, Man'yōshū (book 12, poem 3165), text here

     霍公鳥飛幡之浦爾敷浪乃屢君乎將見因毛鴨

     poto₂to₂gi₁su To₁bata-no₂-ura ni siku nami₁ no₂ sikusiku ki₁mi₁ wo mi₁mu yo₂si moga mo

     (please add an English translation of this usage example)

Derived terms

• 醜ほととぎす (siko₂-poto₂to₂gi₁su, “ugly cuckoo”)
• 元ほととぎす (moto₂-poto₂to₂gi₁su, “cuckoo that came and sang last year”)
• 山ほととぎす (yama-poto₂to₂gi₁su, “mountain cuckoo”)

Descendants

• Japanese: ほととぎす (hototogisu)