魯西亜

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Japanese

Kanji in this term
魯 西 亜
ろ
Jinmeiyō
(ateji) 		し
Grade: 2
(ateji) 		あ
Grade: S
(ateji)
kan'on irregular kan'on
Alternative spelling
魯西亞 (kyūjitai)

Etymology

Borrowing from Russian Росси́я (Rossíja).[1][2][3] Cited since at least 1839.[4]

The spelling is ateji (当て字), current in 1855 when this spelling was used in the title of the 日本国魯西亜国通好条約 (Nippon-koku Roshia-koku Tsūkō Jōyaku, “Treaty of Peace and Amity between the Country of Japan and the Country of Russia”, commonly known as the Treaty of Shimoda).

The spelling was officially discontinued in 1877 after diplomatic pressure from Russia to change the spelling, out of concern that the initial 魯 (ro) character expressed a sense of foolish. However, the newer kanji spelling 露西亜 uses 露 (ro) as the first character, and this was chosen for its sense of dew, from the political metaphor that the morning dew will disappear as the sun rises, wherein "sun" refers to Japan.[5]

The use of 西亜 to spell the latter portion is likely influenced by Chinese phonetics, and historical use of these characters to spell out the -siya portion of Rossiya in sources such as a bible translated into Chinese in 1864.

Pronunciation

Proper noun

魯西亜(ロシア) • (Roshia) 

  1. Dated spelling of ロシア.: Russia (A transcontinental country in Eastern Europe and North Asia)

Usage notes

Due to the foolish sense of the initial 魯 character, this spelling is often viewed as pejorative.

References

  1. ^ Shōgaku Tosho (1988) 国語大辞典（新装版） [Unabridged Dictionary of Japanese (Revised Edition)] (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan, →ISBN
  2. ^ Shinmura, Izuru, editor (1998), 広辞苑 [Kōjien] (in Japanese), Fifth edition, Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten, →ISBN
  3. ^ Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN
  4. ^ “露西亜”, in 日本国語大辞典 [Nihon Kokugo Daijiten]‎ (in Japanese), concise edition, Tokyo: Shogakukan, 2006
  5. ^ 渡辺雅司 (Masaji Watanabe) (2003) ユーラシア研究所ブックレット編集委員会 (Yūrashia Kenkyūjo Bukkuretto Henshū Iinkai, Institute of Eurasian Studies, Booklet Editing Committee), editor, 明治日本とロシアの影 [Meiji Japan and the Shadow of Russia] (in Japanese), 東洋書店 (Tōyō Shoten), →ISBN, pages 4-5
  6. ^ Kindaichi, Kyōsuke et al., editors (1997), 新明解国語辞典 [Shin Meikai Kokugo Jiten] (in Japanese), Fifth edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN
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