Chinese

Noun

桔梗

1. Root of the balloon flower (Platycodon grandiflorus, an herb used in traditional Chinese medicine.)

See also

• 化痰止咳平喘药 (expectorants, anti-tussives, and anti-asthmatics in traditional Chinese medicine)
• 药材 (medicinal materials in traditional Chinese medicine)

References

• 桔梗 on the Chinese Wikipedia.Wikipedia ^zh
• Nigel Wiseman, "English-Chinese Chinese-English Dictionary of Chinese Medicine", 1995. ISBN 7-5357-1656-3.
• http://www.trade.gov.bt/administration/mktbriefs/10.pdf
• http://www.koreantk.com/en/m_sta/med_stat_search.jsp?searchGbn=statis

Japanese

桔梗 (kikyō): the Chinese bellflower

Etymology 1

/kikjau/ → /kikjɔː/ → /kikjoː/

From Middle Chinese 桔梗 ‎(/kiet kˠæŋ^X/, literally “water bucket + stem, stalk”). Compare modern Min Nan reading kiat-kēng.

Pronunciation

• Yutōyomi
• (Tokyo) ききょう [kìkyóó] (Heiban - [0])^[1][2]
• IPA^(key): [kʲi̥kjo̞ː]

Noun

桔梗 ‎(hiragana ききょう, katakana キキョウ, romaji kikyō, historical hiragana ききやう)

1. (botany) the platycodon or Chinese bellflower, Platycodon grandiflorus

Usage notes

As with many terms that name organisms, this term is often spelled in katakana in biological contexts, as キキョウ.

Etymology 2

/kitikau/ → /kit͡ɕikɔː/ → /kit͡ɕikoː/

From Middle Chinese 桔梗 ‎(/kiet kˠæŋ^X/, literally “water bucket + stem, stalk”), using alternate kanji readings.^[1]

This reading is less common than kikyō above, and may be obsolete.

Pronunciation

• On'yomi
• IPA^(key): [kʲit͡ɕiko̞ː]

Noun

桔梗 ‎(hiragana きちこう, romaji kichikō)

1. (possibly obsolete) the platycodon or Chinese bellflower, Platycodon grandiflorus

References

1. 1 2 2006, 大辞林 (Daijirin), Third Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, ISBN 4-385-13905-9
2. ↑ 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