hip-and-gable roof; irimoya roof
A traditional Japanese roof style combining a gable at the top with hipped lower sections; common in temples and historic buildings.
The main hall of this temple is built in the irimoya style.
An irimoya roof has a gable on top and a hipped lower section.
hip-and-gable roof construction; irimoya style building
Standard kanji spelling for this architectural term.
Variant spelling with okurigana; less common but still seen.
Compound of 入り (iri, 'entering') + 母屋 (moya, 'main building'), referring to the way the roof appears to enter or merge into the main structure. The exact historical derivation is uncertain.