協きょう同どう組くみ合あい

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Common word

Meanings

1

noun

cooperative; co-op; association

A business or organization owned and run jointly by its members, sharing profits or benefits. Common types include agricultural cooperatives (農協) and consumer cooperatives (生協).

この地ち域いきには農のう業ぎょう協きょう同どう組くみ合あいがいくつかある。
There are several agricultural cooperatives in this area.

生せい協きょうは消しょう費ひ者しゃのための協きょう同どう組くみ合あいです。

A consumer co-op is a cooperative for consumers.

Written forms

協きょう同どう組くみ合あい
Standard kanji spelling; the most common form in news and formal contexts.
共きょう同どう組くみ合あい
Alternate kanji spelling also seen in news; 協同 emphasizes cooperation, 共同 emphasizes joint action, but both refer to the same type of organization.

Kanji

協co-, cooperation
同same, agree, equal
組association, braid, plait
合fit, suit, join
共together, both, neither

Similar words

協きょう会かい
協会 is a general association or society, often professional or cultural, while 協同組合 specifically refers to a member-owned cooperative enterprise.
組くみ合あい
組合 is a broader term for any union, guild, or association; 協同組合 adds the nuance of cooperative ownership and operation.

Etymology

Compound of 協同 (cooperation, joint) and 組合 (association, union). The term was adopted to translate Western cooperative movements in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.