西瓜

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Chinese

west
melon; claw; gourd
melon; claw; gourd; squash
 
trad. (西瓜) 西
simp. #(西瓜) 西
Literally: “western melon”.
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Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation


Noun

西瓜

西瓜
  1. watermelon

Synonyms

Derived terms

Descendants

Sino-Xenic (西瓜):
  • Japanese: 西瓜(すいか) (suika)
  • Korean: 서과(西瓜) (seogwa)

Others:

Japanese

Japanese Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia ja
Kanji in this term
西
すい
Grade: 2

Jinmeiyō
tōon kan'on
Alternative spelling
水瓜

Etymology

From Middle Chinese 西瓜 (MC sej kwae, literally “west melon”). Compare modern Mandarin 西瓜 (xīguā, watermelon). Sui is the 唐音 (tōon) of 西.[1][2][3][4] There is an alternative spelling of 水瓜,[1][3][2][4][5] which may be seen as both ateji and a calque of English watermelon.

Various Japanese references indicate that the fruit was imported from China in the early Edo period in the 1600s.[1][3][2] However, the word is first attested in Japanese in a text from the 1360s, suggesting that the fruit was originally imported earlier, but did not become more widely known until the 1600s.[4]

Pronunciation

Noun

西(すい)() or 西瓜(スイカ) (suikaすいくわ (suikwa)?

  1. watermelon

Usage notes

As with many terms that name organisms, this term is often spelled in katakana, especially in biological contexts (where katakana is customary), as スイカ.

Derived terms

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 Shinmura, Izuru, editor (1998), 広辞苑 [Kōjien] (in Japanese), Fifth edition, Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten, →ISBN
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 西瓜”, in デジタル大辞泉 [Digital Daijisen]‎ (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan, updated roughly every four months
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 西瓜・水瓜”, in 日本国語大辞典 [Nihon Kokugo Daijiten]‎ (in Japanese), concise edition, Tokyo: Shogakukan, 2006
  5. 5.0 5.1 Kindaichi, Kyōsuke et al., editors (1997), 新明解国語辞典 [Shin Meikai Kokugo Jiten] (in Japanese), Fifth edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN
  6. ^ NHK Broadcasting Culture Research Institute, editor (1998), NHK日本語発音アクセント辞典 [NHK Japanese Pronunciation Accent Dictionary] (in Japanese), Tokyo: NHK Publishing, Inc., →ISBN

Korean

Hanja in this term
西

Noun

西瓜 (seogwa) (hangeul 서과)

  1. hanja form? of 서과 (watermelon)

Okinawan

Kanji in this term
西
しー
Grade: 2
くゎ
Jinmeiyō
on'yomi

Pronunciation

Noun

西(しー)(くゎ) or 西瓜(シークヮ) (shīkwa

  1. watermelon
    Synonym: 広東瓜 (kwantuui)

References

  • シークヮ” in Okinawa Center of Language Study, Shuri-Naha Dialect Dictionary (archived; reopens 2024).