若君

Japanese

Kanji in this term
若	君
わか Grade: 6	きみ > ぎみ Grade: 3
kun'yomi

Etymology

Compound of 若 (waka, “youth, child”) +‎ 君 (kimi, “lord”).

The kimi changes to gimi as an instance of rendaku (連濁).

Noun

若(わか)君(ぎみ) • (wakagimi) 

1. title for a child of a high-ranking aristocrat or noble; used for both male or female children
   • 970–999, Utsubo Monogatari, page Fujiwara no Kimi:

     かくて、父母の住み給ふまちには、寝殿には、ありて宮より初め奉りて、こなたの御腹の若君達、内裏の女御の御腹の女宮たちなど、みな大殿一殿に、髫髪、下仕なむど、かたち心ある中に、勝りたるを、選り侍らはせ給ふ。

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

   • c. 1001–1014, Murasaki Shikibu, Genji Monogatari (Yūgao)

     右近、はた、かしがましく言ひ騒がれんを思ひて、君も、「今更にもらさじ」と、忍び給へば、若君の上をだに、え聞かず、あさましく、ゆくへなくて過ぎ行く。

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

2. (in contrast to 姫君 (himegimi)) the title for a son of a high-ranking aristocrat or noble
   • c. 11th century: Tsutsumi Chūnagon Monogatari (Kai awase)

     まろが御前は、ただ若君一ところにて、いみじくわりなくおぼゆれば、ただいまも、姉君の御もとに人やらむとて。

     (please add an English translation of this usage example)

   • c. 12th century: Torikaebaya Monogatari (volume 1)

     おほかたは、ただ同じ物と見ゆる御かたちの、若君は、あてにかほりけだかく、なまめかしき方添ひて見え給、姫君は、はなばなとほこりかに、見ても飽く世なく、あたりにもこぼれちる愛敬などぞ、今より似るものなく物し給ふける。

     (please add an English translation of this usage example)

   • 1603, Vocabvlario da Lingoa de Iapam (Nippo Jisho) [Vocabulary of the Language of Japan] (in Portuguese), Nagasaki, page 675:

     Vacaguimi. ワカギミ (若君) まだ幼い公子、すなわち、大身の主君の子息.

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

See also

• 姫(ひめ)君(ぎみ) (himegimi)

References

• Doi, Tadao (1603–1604) Hōyaku Nippo Jisho (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Iwanami Shoten, published 1980, →ISBN.
• Kōno, Tama (c. 970–999) Nihon Koten Bungaku Taikei 10: Utsubo Monogatari 1 (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Iwanami Shoten, published 1959, →ISBN.
• Ōtsuki, Osamu with Gen'e Imai, Sumiaki Morishita, Masao Karashima (1992) Shin Nihon Koten Bungaku Taikei 26: Tsutsumi Chūnagon Monogatari, Torikaebaya Monogatari (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Iwanami Shoten, →ISBN
• Yamagishi, Tokuhei (1958) Nihon Koten Bungaku Taikei 14: Genji Monogatari (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Iwanami Shoten, →ISBN