Japanese

野狐 (yako, nogitsune): mythological spirit foxes.

Pronunciation

• On'yomi: Kan'on
• (Tokyo) や​こ [yáꜜkò] (Atamadaka - [1])^[1]
• IPA^(key): [ja̠ko̞]

Noun

野狐 ‎(hiragana やこ, romaji yako)

1. a wild fox
2. a mythological spirit fox, fond of tricks and pranks, and capable of possessing people
3. (Zen) someone who has not fully attained enlightenment, but puts on airs and becomes self-important as if they have

Derived terms

Etymology 2

Compound of 野 ‎(no, “field; wilderness”) +‎ 狐 ‎(kitsune, “fox”).^[2]The kitsune changes to gitsune as an instance of rendaku (連濁).

Pronunciation

• Kun'yomi
• (Tokyo) のぎ​つね [nògíꜜtsùnè] (Nakadaka - [2])^[1]
• IPA^(key): [no̞ɡ̃it͡sɯ̃ᵝne̞]

Noun

野狐 ‎(hiragana のぎつね, romaji nogitsune)

1. a wild fox
2. a mythological spirit fox, fond of tricks and pranks, and capable of possessing people

References

1. 1 2 2006, 大辞林 (Daijirin), Third Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, ISBN 4-385-13905-9
2. ↑ 1988, 国語大辞典（新装版） (Kokugo Dai Jiten, Revised Edition) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan