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Kotomora

唐

T'ang, China, foreign

JLPTN1StatusJōyō · secondary schoolFrequencyTop 2,000Strokes10

Readings

On'yomi

  • トウ

Kun'yomi

  • から

Nanori

  • かろ
  • たん

Meaning

唐 centers on the historical Tang dynasty of China, and by extension came to refer to China itself or things foreign, especially in older Japanese contexts.

Most common words using 唐

20 of 139
  • 唐とう

    Tang dynasty (of China; 618-907); T'ang dynasty

  • 唐梨からなし

    Chinese quince (Pseudocydonia sinensis)

  • 唐突とうとつ

    abrupt; sudden

  • 唐辛子とうがらし
    N1

    capsicum (Capsicum annuum, esp. the cultivated chili peppers); chili pepper (chile, chilli); cayenne; red pepper

  • 荒唐無稽こうとうむけい

    absurd; nonsensical; preposterous

  • 唐草からくさ

    arabesque pattern

  • 唐松からまつ

    (Japanese) larch (Larix leptolepis, Larix kaempferi)

  • 遣唐使けんとうし

    envoy to Tang China

  • 唐人からびと

    Chinese person; Korean person

  • 唐人とうじん

    Chinese person

  • 唐戸からど

    hinged door

  • 唐木からき

    exotic non-Japanese wood (rosewood, ebony, blackwood, etc.); imported wood

  • 七味唐辛子しちみとうがらし

    blend of seven spices (cayenne, sesame, Japanese pepper, citrus peel, etc.)

  • 唐橋からはし

    arched bridge with Chinese-style railings; Chinese-style bridge

  • しし唐ししとう

    shishito pepper (variety of Capsicum annuum)

  • 唐檜とうひ

    spruce tree (esp. Picea jezoensis hondoensis, a variety of Ezo spruce)

  • 唐揚げからあげ

    deep-frying food lightly coated in flour or potato starch; deep-fried food (esp. chicken)

  • しし唐辛子ししとうがらし

    shishito; small sweet green pepper

  • ドイツ唐檜ドイツとうひ

    Norway spruce (Picea abies)

  • 一味唐辛子いちみとうがらし

    cayenne pepper powder

Explore all words using 唐 →

Study

Etymology

唐 originally depicted a person speaking with an exaggerated mouth, possibly related to boasting or a large voice. It was later borrowed phonetically to represent the Tang dynasty, and its modern form retains 广 (building) over ヨ and 口, though the historical connection to the original meaning is uncertain.

Meaning mnemonic

Under a wide roof 广, a storyteller's mouth 口 speaks of far-off lands, with a hand gesture ヨ in between. This is the Tang dynasty, representing China and all things foreign.

Reading mnemonic

For トウ, imagine a tall pagoda in Tang China with a big toe-shaped roof: toe -> トウ, and the toe points to the foreign land.