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かぼちゃ・カボチャ【南瓜】

kabocha

Pronunciation: [kabot͡ɕa]

Definition

Noun

  1. A variety of winter squash known as the Japanese squash, the Kabocha squash or the Japanese pumpkin.
  2. (Generic) Any pumpkin or squash of the genus Cucurbita.

Etymology

Borrowed from the Portuguese word "Cambodia abóbora", meaning "Cambodian pumpkin", which was introduced to Japan by Portuguese sailors some time around 1541. The full name was reduced to かぼちゃ kabocha in Eastern Japan (compare this to the modern word カンボジア kanbojia "Cambodia"), while it became ぼうぶら boubura especially in Kyushu. The Kanji for this term stems from the Sinitic word なんか【南瓜】 nanka "pumpkin; gourd" (literally "southern gourd").

Spelling

OrthographyForm
Kanji南瓜
Kanaかぼちゃ
カボチャ
Romanizationkabocha
Pronunciation (IPA)[kabot͡ɕa]

意味:かぼちゃ・カボチャ【南瓜】

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Categories:

南瓜
Cite this entry: Read, Zachary. (2023, July 30). かぼちゃ・カボチャ【南瓜】 : kabocha | define meaning. JLect: Japonic Languages and Dialects Database. Retrieved 2024, October 31, from https://www.jlect.com/entry/1340/kabocha/.