くるわ

Japanese

Alternative spellings
曲輪 郭 廓

Etymology

Compound of くる (kuru, “going around”, consider adverbs くるくる (kurukuru), くるり (kururi, “spinningly; turningly”), verb 繰る (kuru, “to spin, to wind (a thread); to turn (a page)”)) +‎ わ (wa, “loop? enclosure?”, the same element appearing in other words in kanji as 曲・回 (“sharp bend, loop, or bight, as in a river or coastline”), and as 輪・環 (“a ring, a loop; a hoop (as for a barrel); a circle, a round; a wheel”)), referring to a wall, palisade, moat (often dry), or natural waterway surrounding a castle or other fortification.

First appears in the late 1500s in reference to such a wall or moat. Later used to refer to the area bounded by such a feature, and then used periphrastically to refer to a red-light district, which was usually divided from the rest of a town by such a wall or fence.

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) くるわ [kùrúwá] (Heiban – [0])
• IPA^(key): [kɯ̟ɾɯ̟β̞a̠]

Noun

くるわ • (kuruwa) ^{←くるわ (kurwa)?}

1. [from late 1500s] a palisade, wall, moat, natural waterway, or other structure used to divide a specific area from its surroundings, such as a castle or fort

   Synonym: 囲い (kakoi, “enclosure” in general)

2. [probably from early 1600s] the area so bounded by such a structure
3. [from 1678] a red-light district, specifically one that is divided from the rest of the town by means of a wall or fence or similar structure

   Synonyms: 遊郭 (yūkaku), 遊里 (yūri, in general, regardless of any wall)

4. [from 1698] (poetry, haiku) in 俳諧 (haikai, “vulgar haiku”), the general realm of subject matter used for the opening line

Derived terms

Derived terms

• 郭(くるわ)通(がよ)い (kuruwa-gayoi, “frequently visiting a red-light district”)
• 郭詞, 郭言葉(くるわことば) (kuruwa kotoba, “the argot of the red-light districts during the Edo period”)
• 郭(くるわ)沙汰(ざた) (kuruwa-zata, “the rumors and stories of the red-light district”)
• 郭(くるわ)三界(さんがい) (kuruwa sangai, “the area or neighborhood of a red-light district”)
• 郭(くるわ)住(ず)まい (kuruwa-zumai, “residing in a red-light district; the lifestyle of a prostitute”)
• 郭(くるわ)勤(づと)め (kuruwa-zutome, “working in a red-light district; someone working in a red-light district, more specifically as a prostitute”)
• 郭者(くるわもの) (kuruwamono, “someone working in a red-light district”)
• 郭(くるわ)模様(もよう) (kuruwa moyō, “the fashionable patterns of clothing popular in the red-light district”)
• 郭(くるわ)様(よう) (kuruwa yō, “the manners and customs of the red-light district”)