English

Alternative forms

• (archaic Chinese forms): Chin, Kin
• (dated Korean forms): Chin

Proper noun

Jin

1. (geography) A river (晉水) in Shanxi Province, China, emptying into the Fen River.
2. (historical, geography) A marchland (c. 1046–677 BC) and duchy (677–376 BC) of the Zhou Kingdom around the river.
3. A Chinese and Korean surname.
4. (historical) A titular principality of the Wei Empire (est. AD 264) and other later Chinese states.
5. (historical, geography) An empire in China (AD 265–420) established by Sima Yan's overthrow of the Wei and replaced by barbarian conquerors in the north and Liu Yu's Song Empire in the south.
6. (historical) Synonym of Sima: the dynasty which ruled this empire.
7. (historical, chiefly Chinese contexts) The late 3rd to early 5th century, the era during which the Sima clan were the legitimate emperors of China.
8. (geography) A river (晉江) in Quanzhou Municipality, Fujian, emptying into the Taiwan Strait.
9. (historical geography) A prefecture of imperial China centered on Linfen, Shanxi.
10. (historical geography) Former name of Linfen as the seat of the prefecture.
11. (historical, geography) An realm in early-10th century Shaanxi loyal to the Tang after their overthrow by the Later Liang.
12. (historical, geography) The Later Jin, a short-lived empire in 10th-century Shaanxi; the 930s and '40s, the era of this empire.
13. (historical) Synonym of Shi: the dynasty which ruled this empire.
14. (linguistics) A Chinese dialect family (code cjy) spoken by about 45 million people in Shanxi and adjacent provinces.

Synonyms

• (empire & era): Sima Jin, Liang Jin
• (Shanxinese river): Jinshui
• (Fujianese river): Jinjiang
• (prefecture & its seat): Jinzhou
• (dialect family): Jin Chinese, Jinese, Shanxinese, Shanxi dialect

Hyponyms

• (imperial dynasty): Western Jin; Eastern Jin
• (dialect family): Bingzhou, Lüliang, Shangdang, Wutai, Datong–Baotou, Zhangjiakou–Hohhot, Handan–Xinxiang, Zhidan–Yanchuan

Derived terms

• Jinese, Jin Chinese

Related terms

• Jinjiang, Zayton, Tsinkiang

Etymology 2

From the atonal pinyin romanization of Chinese 金 ‎(Jīn, “orig. gold, golden”). As a surname, legendarily derived from the descendants of Shaohao who took a golden phoenix as their tribal emblem. As an area and town in Shaanxi, named for the placer deposits of gold on the Yue River. As a Jurchen empire and dynastic name, a Chinese calque of Jurchen name of the Ashi River within modern Harbin, preserved in Chinese transcription as 按出虎 (Middle Chinese: ʔan-tsyhwit-xu). As a Manchu empire and dynastic name, an early continuation of the former Jurchen name prior to the 1636 proclamation of the Qing.

Proper noun

Jin

1. A Chinese surname, given 29th among the Hundred Family Surnames.
2. (historical geography) A prefecture of imperial China centered on Ankang, Shaanxi.
3. (historical geography) Former name of Ankang as the seat of the prefecture.
4. (historical, geography) An empire in northern China (AD 1115–1234) established by an invasion of Liao by the Wanyan Jurchens and overthrown by an invasion of the Mongols.
5. (historical) Synonym of Wanyan: the dynasty which ruled this empire.
6. (historical, ethnography, uncommon) Synonym of Jurchen: the Tungusic people who ruled this empire.
7. (historical, chiefly Chinese contexts) The 12th to early 13th century, the era during which the Wanyan clan were the legitimate emperors of northern China.
8. (historical, geography) Synonym of Qing: the Chinese empire, dynasty, and era, (chiefly) during the years 1616 to 1636, prior to the formal declaration of the Qing.

Synonyms

• (surname): Kim (Korean equivalent); Kam (Cantonese equivalent)
• (prefecture & its seat): Jinzhou, Xicheng
• (empire & era): Jurchen, Jurchen Jin, Jinn

Translations

Etymology 3

From the atonal pinyin romanization of Chinese 錦 ‎(Jǐn, “orig. brocade”).

Proper noun

Jin

1. (geography) A river (錦江) in Jiangxi and Guangdong provinces in China, emptying into the Bei or North River.
2. (geography) A river (錦江) in Sichuan Province, China, emptying into the Min River.
3. (historical geography) A prefecture of imperial China centered on Luyang, Hunan.
4. (historical geography) Former name of Luyang as the seat of the prefecture.

Synonyms

• (rivers): Jinjiang
• (Jianxinese river): Changjiang Creek or River (upper course)
• (prefecture & seat): Jinzhou

Etymology 4

From the atonal pinyin romanization of Chinese 靳 ‎(Jìn, “orig. a piece of horse tack”). As a surname, legendarily derived from Zhurong.

Proper noun

Jin

1. A Chinese surname.
2. (geography) A river (靳江) in Hunan Province, China, emptying into the Xiang River.

Synonyms

• (river): Jinjiang

Etymology 5

From the revised romanization of Korean 진 ‎(jin). As an ancient kingdom, originally from Chinese 辰 ‎(“5th earthly branch”), whose Old Chinese pronunciation has been reconstructed */[d]ər/, possibly used by the ancient state from its association with "east". As the medieval precursor of Balhae, originally Chinese 震, whose Middle Chinese pronunciation was tsyin, possibly intended as a variant of the original state's name (Middle Chinese: dzyin) or to signify "thunderclap", "shock", "tremor", &c. As a surname, the modern Korean form of originally separate names derived from Chinese 陳, 秦, 眞, as well as 晉 above.

Proper noun

Jin

1. (historical, geography) An ancient state or tribal confederation in northern Korea.
2. (historical, geography) Synonym of Balhae, a northern Korean state, (chiefly) between its AD 698 founding and 712 renaming.
3. A Korean surname.

Derived terms

• Jinhan

Etymology 6

From the romanji form of Japanese 仁 ‎(“benevolence”)

Proper noun

Jin

1. A Japanese male given name.

Japanese

Romanization

Jin

1. rōmaji reading of じん

English

Noun

jin ‎(plural jins)

1. Alternative spelling of djinn

Anagrams

• IJN

Abenaki

Etymology

From English gin.

Noun

jin

1. gin

References

• Laurent, New Familiar Abenakis and English Dialogues

Irish

Noun

jin m ‎(genitive singular jin)

1. gin (alcoholic beverage)

Declension

Japanese

Romanization

jin

1. rōmaji reading of じん
2. rōmaji reading of ジン

Kurdish

Etymology

From Proto-Indo-European *gʷḗn.

Noun

jin f

1. woman (adult female human being)
2. wife

Lojban

Rafsi

jin

1. rafsi of djine.

Mandarin

Romanization

jin

1. Nonstandard spelling of jīn.
2. Nonstandard spelling of jǐn.
3. Nonstandard spelling of jìn.

Usage notes

• English transcriptions of Mandarin speech often fail to distinguish between the critical tonal differences employed in the Mandarin language, using words such as this one without the appropriate indication of tone.