Skip to content
Kotomora

臘

12th lunar month

Strokes19

Readings

On'yomi

  • ロウ

Kun'yomi

—

Meaning

臘 centers on the twelfth month of the lunar calendar, a time traditionally associated with year-end rituals and offerings.

Most common words using 臘

  • 臘乾ラカン

    Chinese smoked and salted ham

  • 旧臘きゅうろう

    last December; end of last year

  • 臘ろう

    offering ceremony held on the third day of the dog after the winter solstice

  • 臘月ろうげつ

    twelfth lunar month; 12th month of the lunar calendar

Explore all words using 臘 →

Study

Etymology

臘 combines the meat radical ⺼ with the phonetic component 巤. It originally referred to a year-end sacrifice of meat, later extended to the twelfth lunar month when such rituals occurred.

Meaning mnemonic

The left side ⺼ (meat) suggests an offering, and the right side 巤 looks like a complex ritual vessel. Picture a meat offering prepared during the twelfth lunar month.

Reading mnemonic

For ロウ, imagine a low, glowing fire during the twelfth-month ritual: low -> ロウ, and the meat offering is placed beside it.