遠くの親類より近くの他人

Japanese

Kanji in this term
遠	親	類	近	他	人
とお Grade: 2	しん Grade: 2	るい Grade: 4	ちか Grade: 2	た Grade: 3	にん Grade: 1

Alternative spelling
遠くの親類より近くの他人 (kyūjitai)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [to̞ːkɯ̟ no̞ ɕĩn̺ɾɯ̟i jo̞ɾʲi t͡ɕika̠kɯ̟ no̞ ta̠ɲ̟ĩɴ]

Proverb

遠(とお)くの親(しん)類(るい)より近(ちか)くの他(た)人(にん) • (tōku no shinrui yori chikaku no tanin) 

1. strangers nearby over family far away; better is a neighbour that is near than a brother far off

Usage notes

• Used to emphasise the importance of building good relationships with one's neighbours, as they will be the people one is more likely to rely on in an emergency.
• Compare Chinese 遠親不如近鄰 / 远亲不如近邻 (yuǎnqīn bùrú jìnlín).
• Compare Proverbs 27:10 KJV: Thine own friend, and thy father's friend, forsake not; neither go into thy brother's house in the day of thy calamity: for better is a neighbour that is near than a brother far off.