Nippon/Nihon

webmaster on Mar 14th 2010 05:47 am edit

  • What is the official pronounciation of Japan in Japanese? Is it Nihon or Nippon? Thanks a lot! :)


  • The official name of Japan is 日本国 (Nihonkoku), so the former is correct.


  • Thanks a bunch! :)

    So, I'll use Nihon then, as it is indeed the official name and is used by most people in Japan. Thanks! :)


  • The words Nihon and Nippon are written the same in kanji, they are combined from the kanji NICHI (sun) and HON (origin), hence the name "Land of the rising sun". You can find a nice explanation here: Japan FAQts (http://www.theforeigner-japan.com/japanfaqts.htm).
    When combining these kanji the combination of these two kanji results in a contraction: NICHI+HON = NIPPON

    as a reference: one pencil is counted as ICHI+HON = IPPON

    This has been the official name for a long time, however, as happens in all languages, the word has evolved into NIHON, which is now the official name.

    NIPPON is still used, but has an archaic ring to it nowadays.







    • #If you have any other info about this subject , Please add it free.#
    Your name:
    E-mail:
    Telphone:

    Your comments:


    If you have any other info about Nippon/Nihon , Please add it free.

    Filed in enart.5isou.com |