神人

神人

1. (literary) god; deity; spiritual being; immortal

   • 昔孝明皇帝，夢見神人，身有日光，飛在殿前。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     昔孝明皇帝，梦见神人，身有日光，飞在殿前。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: Mouzi Lihuolun

     Xī Xiàomíng huángdì, mèngjiàn shénrén, shēn yǒu rìguāng, fēi zài diàn qián.

     In the past, Emperor Ming of Han dreamed of a spiritual being, whose body shone with sunlight and flew to the front of his palace.

2. (literary) gods and humans
3. (literary) man of great talent

• 天人 (tiānrén)

From Middle Chinese compound 神人 (MC zyin nyin). The 呉音 (goon) reading, so likely the initial borrowing.

Replaced by the jinin reading.

• (Tokyo) じんにん (Heiban – )^[1]
• IPA^(key):

神(じん)人(にん) • (jinnin) 

1. (archaic) a low-ranking position at a shrine, helping to conduct the yearly ceremonies and patrolling the grounds, among other responsibilities

/d͡ʑinnin/ → /d͡ʑinin/

Change in pronunciation from jinnin. Now the more common reading.^[2][1]

• (Tokyo) じにん (Heiban – )
• IPA^(key):

神(じ)人(にん) • (jinin) 

1. from the Heian period through the Muromachi period, a low-ranking position at a shrine, helping to conduct the yearly ceremonies and patrolling the grounds, among other responsibilities

   In the late Heian period, the jinin position was useful for the protection offered by shrine authority, and mass demonstrations were held to press for various governmental changes, much as were held by Buddhist monks. Starting from the Kamakura period, lay people such as merchants or performers would subordinate to a shrine as jinin for purposes of exemption from various taxes or corvee labor requirements.^[1][2]

From Middle Chinese compound 神人 (MC zyin nyin). The kan'on reading, so likely a later borrowing.

• (Tokyo) しんじん (Heiban – )^[1]
• IPA^(key):

神(しん)人(じん) • (shinjin) 

1. gods and humans
2. a person of god-like nobility
3. a person with mystical or god-like power
4. (shinto) alternate for jinin above: a low-ranking position at a shrine, helping to conduct the yearly ceremonies and patrolling the grounds, among other responsibilities

• 神人同形説(しんじんどうけいせつ) (shinjin dōkei setsu): a belief or perspective that applies human or human-like qualities to gods and/or spirits, as a kind of personification

神(しん)人(じん) • (Shinjin) 

1. (Christianity) Jesus, Jesus Christ

Compound of 神 (kami, “god, spirit”) +‎ 人 (hito, “person”).^[2] The hito changes to bito as an instance of rendaku (連濁).

• IPA^(key):

神(かみ)人(びと) • (kamibito) 

1. (archaic, Shinto) a priest
   • c. 1001–1014, Murasaki Shikibu, Genji Monogatari (Wakana, part 2) (text here):

     神人(かみびと)の手(て)に取(と)りもたる榊葉(さかきば)に / 木綿(ゆふ)かけ添(そ)ふる深(ふか)き夜(よ)の霜(しも)

     kamibito no te ni torimotaru sakakiba ni / yufu kake sofuru fukaki yo no shimo

     the deep night's frost accompanies the ceremonial ties / on the sakaki leaves held in the hands of the priests

From Okinawan 神人,^[1] in turn from 神 (kami, “god, spirit”) +‎ ん (n, possessive particle, reduced form of ぬ (nu)) +‎ 人 (tchu, “person”).

• IPA^(key):

神(かみん)人(ちゅ) • (kaminchu) 

1. (Okinawa, Shinto) Synonym of 巫女 (miko, “shrine maiden”)