Chinese

Noun

族長

1. clan elder; head of a clan

Japanese

Etymology

From Sinitic 族長.

Pronunciation

• On'yomi
• IPA^(key): /zo.ku.t͡ɕo.o/, [zo̞kɯᵝt͡ɕʲo̞ː]

Noun

族長 ‎(hiragana ぞくちょう, romaji zokuchō)

1. the head of a family or clan
2. a patriarch of ancient Israel, as described in the Bible

Usage notes

Historically, this role has more commonly been filled by a man. However, this word alone is generally not gender-specific, and can refer to either a male or female head of a family. To specify a particular gender, this word may be prefixed with either 女 ‎(onna, “woman”) or 男 ‎(otoko, “man”).

Synonyms

• (head of a family): 家長 (かちょう) ‎(kachō)

Derived terms

• 族長時代 (ぞくちょうじだい) ‎(Zokuchō Jidai): the Patriarchal Age, as described in the Bible

See also

• 女族長 (おんなぞくちょう) ‎(onna zokuchō): a matriarch, a female head of a family or clan
• 男族長 (おとこぞくちょう) ‎(otoko zokuchō): a patriarch, a male head of a family or clan
• 女家長 (おんなかちょう) ‎(onna kachō): a matriarch, a female head of a house or household
• 男家長 (おとこかちょう) ‎(otoko kachō): a patriarch, a male head of a house or household