Definify.com
Definition 2024
松竹梅
松竹梅
Chinese
| loose; pine | bamboo | plum flower | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
simp. and trad. (松竹梅) |
松 | 竹 | 梅 | |
Noun
松竹梅
- pine, bamboo and plum, the plants which do not wither in winter; the Three Friends of Winter; symbols of resilience, perseverance
Japanese
| Kanji in this term | ||
|---|---|---|
| 松 | 竹 | 梅 |
|
しょう Grade: 4 |
ちく Grade: 1 |
ばい Grade: 4 |
| on'yomi | ||
Etymology
Compound of 松 (shō, “pine”) + 竹 (chiku, “bamboo”) + 梅 (bai, “plum”).
Pronunciation
- On'yomi
- (Tokyo) しょうちくばい [shòóchíkúꜜbàì] (Nakadaka - [4])[1]
- (Tokyo) しょうちくばい [shòóchíꜜkùbàì] (Nakadaka - [3])[1]
- IPA(key): [ɕo̞ːt͡ɕikɯᵝba̠i]
Proper noun
松竹梅 (hiragana しょうちくばい, romaji shōchikubai)
- Also known as 'The Three Auspicious Friends', or 'The Three Friends of Winter', is a type of planting sold at New Year's time in Japan to bring good fortune for the coming year. Shōchikubai means pine (松, matsu), bamboo (竹, take), and plum (梅, ume): The pine represents strength, the bamboo represents longevity, and the plum represents beauty and optimism. Their arrangement together is accented by a dry riverbed of white pebbles. Around the New Year, you would see these symbols present at businesses, department stores and homes across Japan.
References
External links
-
松竹梅 on the Japanese Wikipedia.Wikipedia ja
- Sho Chiku Bai on Wikipedia.Wikipedia