Chinese

Proper noun

四君子

1. Four Gentleman; four plants (chrysanthemum, bamboo, orchid, and plum blossom) that are often depicted in traditional Chinese, Korean, and Japanese ink-and-brush painting

Related terms

• 歲寒三友／岁寒三友 (suìhán sānyǒu)

References

• Four Gentleman on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Japanese

Etymology

Probably from Middle Chinese compound 四君子 ‎(*sì *giuən *tziə̌, literally “four gentlemen”). Compare modern Chinese 四君子 ‎(Sì Jūnzi).

Pronunciation

• On'yomi
• (Tokyo) しく​んし [shìkúꜜǹshì] (Nakadaka - [2])^[1]
• IPA^(key): [ɕikɯ̃ᵝnɕi]

Proper noun

四君子 ‎(hiragana しくんし, romaji Shikunshi)

1. the Four Gentlemen: ume (the plum blossom, symbolising winter), ran (the orchid, symbolizing spring), matsu, (the bamboo, symbolizing summer), and kiku (chrysanthemum, symbolizing autumn):

   These four plants are often the subject of traditional Chinese, Korean, and Japanese paintings, with each often used to represent one of the four seasons; winter, spring, summer, and autumn, respectively.

Coordinate terms

• 松竹梅 (しょうちくばい, ​shōchikubai): pine, bamboo, and plum (similarly appearing as the subject of traditional Chinese, Korean, and Japanese paintings)

References

1. ↑ 2006, 大辞林 (Daijirin), Third Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, ISBN 4-385-13905-9