also: どひ
noun
slaves (ritsuryō system); bondservants
Only with reading ぬひ
Historical term for the lowest social class under the ritsuryō legal system; refers to unfree laborers.
律令制では、奴婢は賤民の最下層に位置づけられていた。
Under the ritsuryō system, slaves were placed at the lowest stratum of the lowly classes.
noun
male and female servants; manservants and maids
General term for household servants of both genders; can be read as ぬひ or どひ, though ぬひ is more common.
昔の大きな屋敷には多くの奴婢が働いていた。
In the old large mansions, many male and female servants worked.
From Chinese 奴婢 (núbì), combining 奴 (slave, servant) and 婢 (maidservant). The reading ぬひ is the go-on reading, while どひ is a variant using the kan'on reading for the first character.