井の中の蛙大海を知らず

Japanese

Alternative forms

• 井の内の蛙大海を知らず (i no uchi no kawazu taikai o shirazu)

Etymology

Partial calque of Literary Chinese 井鼃不可以語於海者，拘於虛也 ("A frog in a well cannot be talked with about an ocean - it is confined to its own narrow place."), from the writings of Zhuangzi.

Comprised of 井 (i, “well”) +‎ の (no, possessive particle) +‎ 中 (naka, “inside”) +‎ の (no, possessive particle) +‎ 蛙 (kawazu, “frog”) +‎ 大海 (taikai, “great ocean”) +‎ を (o, object particle) +‎ 知らず (shirazu, “not know”, the classical negative conjugation of verb 知る (shiru, “to know”)), literally “a frog in a well does not know the great ocean”.

The back-formation of this form in pseudo-kanbun would be 井中之蛙不知大海. Compare modern Chinese 井底之蛙 (jǐngdǐzhīwā), Korean 정중지와 부지대해 (井中之蛙 不知大海, jeongjungjiwa bujidaehae).

First cited to 1179.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):

Proverb

井(い)の中(なか)の蛙(かわず)大(たい)海(かい)を知(し)らず • (i no naka no kawazu taikai o shirazu) ^{←ゐのなかのかはづたいかいをしらず (wi no naka no kafadu taikai wo sirazu)?}

1. (figuratively) a narrow world view based on limited experience
   • 2006, 下 健, 言葉と生きる, 新風舎, page 23,

     また、私(わたし)たちは往(おう)々(おう)にしてほんの少(すこ)し周(しゅう)囲(い)の人(ひと)たちより良(よ)い結(けっ)果(か)がでると、有(う)頂(ちょう)天(てん)になって自(じ)慢(まん)したいような気持(きも)ちになりがちです。
     まさに『井(い)の中(なか)の蛙(かわず)大(たい)海(かい)を知(し)らず』で恥(は)ずかしい話(はなし)であります。

     Mata, watashi-tachi wa ōō ni shite hon no sukoshi shūi no hito-tachi yori yoi kekka ga deru to, uchōten ni natte jiman shitai yō na kimochi ni narigachi desu.
     Masa ni “i no naka no kawazu taikai o shirazu” de hazukashii hanashi de arimasu.

     We are also prone to feel proud of ourselves and feel like bragging when we get a result that is just a little bit better than that of the others around us.
     This is indeed a case of "a frog in a well does not know the great ocean" and is an embarrassing state of affairs.

Synonyms

• 井(い)の中(なか)の蛙(かわず) (i no naka no kawazu)
• 井(い)の内(うち)の蛙(かわず) (i no uchi no kawazu)
• 井底(せいてい)の蛙(かわず) (seitei no kawazu)

See also

• Chinese: 井底之蛙 (jǐngdǐzhīwā)

References