also: じょかん · にょかん
noun
Refers to a female official or attendant serving in a royal or imperial court, especially in historical Japanese contexts.
平安時代の女官は、宮中で重要な役割を果たしていた。
Court ladies in the Heian period played important roles in the imperial palace.
彼女は女官として皇后に仕えた。
She served the empress as a lady-in-waiting.
Rare alternate reading; may appear in older texts or specific contexts.
侍女 is a more general term for a lady's maid or female attendant, not necessarily in a court setting, while 女官 specifically denotes a court-appointed female official.
Compound of 女 (woman) and 官 (official, government post). The reading にょうかん is a sound change from じょかん, with にょう being a common euphonic shift for 女 in certain compounds.