Definify.com
Definition 2024
海豚
海豚
Chinese
| ocean; sea | suckling pig | ||
|---|---|---|---|
|
simp. and trad. (海豚) |
海 | 豚 | |
Noun
海豚
Synonyms
| Dialectal synonyms of 海豚 (“dolphin”) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Variety | Location | Words |
| Formal (Written Standard Chinese) | 海豚 | |
| Taxonomic name | 海豚 | |
| Mandarin | Beijing | 海豚 |
| Taiwan | 海豚 | |
| Cantonese | Hong Kong | 海豚 |
| Hakka | Miaoli (N. Sixian) | 海豚 |
| Liudui (S. Sixian) | 海豚 | |
| Hsinchu (Hailu) | 海豚 | |
| Dongshi (Dabu) | 海豚 | |
| Zhuolan (Raoping) | 海豚 | |
| Yunlin (Zhao'an) | 海豬 | |
| Min Nan | Xiamen | 白鰗、海豬、媽祖婆魚、媽祖魚、鎮港魚 |
| Zhangzhou | 白鰗、媽祖魚、鎮港魚 | |
| Taipei | 海豬仔 | |
| Kaohsiung | 海豬 | |
| Tainan | 海豬仔 | |
| Taichung | 海豬 | |
| Yilan | 海豬仔 | |
| Lukang | 海豬仔 | |
| Sanxia | 海豬仔 | |
| Kinmen | 海豬 | |
| Magong | 海鼠 | |
| Hsinchu | 海豬 | |
| Chaozhou | 義魚 | |
Japanese
| Kanji in this term | |
|---|---|
| 海 | 豚 |
| Grade: 2 | Grade: S |
| Irregular | |
Etymology
Unclear. One of the more likely native-Japanese theories is that this was originally a compound of Old Japanese elements 魚 (iwo, “fish”) + 食 (uka, “food, something used as food”).
/iwo uka/ → /iru uka/ → /iruka/
Another possibility is that it was a borrowing from Ainu. Compare Sakhalin Ainu リク (riku), イリク (iriku), or Kuril Ainu リカ (rika, “whale”).[1]
Given the unlikely sound shift required for the Old Japanese derivation, an origin from Ainu seems more likely.
The 海豚 spelling, which literally means “sea pig”, is borrowed from Chinese.
Pronunciation
Alternative forms
- 鯆 (rare)
Noun
海豚 (hiragana いるか, katakana イルカ, romaji iruka)
Usage notes
As with many terms that name organisms, this term is often spelled in katakana in biological contexts, as イルカ.
Derived terms
|
See also
References
- ↑ 2005, Martine Robbeets (2005:190) Is Japanese Related to Korean, Tungusic, Mongolic and Turkic?
- ↑ 2006, 大辞林 (Daijirin), Third Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, ISBN 4-385-13905-9
- ↑ 1998, NHK日本語発音アクセント辞典 (NHK Japanese Pronunciation Accent Dictionary) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: NHK, ISBN 978-4-14-011112-3
- 1988, 国語大辞典（新装版） (Kokugo Dai Jiten, Revised Edition) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan
Kikai
Etymology
From Middle Chinese compound 海豚 (xojX dwon, literally “sea + pig”). Cognate with Okinawan 海豚 (fītu).
Noun
海豚 (hiragana ふぃとぅ, romaji fitu, hiragana ぴとぅ, romaji pitu)
Kunigami
Etymology
From Middle Chinese compound 海豚 (xojX dwon, literally “sea + pig”). Cognate with Okinawan 海豚 (fītu).
Noun
海豚 (hiragana ひーとぅい, romaji hītui)
Northern Amami-Oshima
Etymology
From Middle Chinese compound 海豚 (xojX dwon, literally “sea + pig”). Cognate with Okinawan 海豚 (fītu).
Noun
海豚 (hiragana ふとぅ, romaji futu)
Okinawan
Etymology
From Middle Chinese compound 海豚 (xojX dwon, literally “sea + pig”).
Noun
海豚 (hiragana ふぃーとぅ, romaji fītu)