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棋布 (きふ) Japanese meaning | Kotomora
Meanings 1
noun, noun or participle which takes 'suru'
scattering like Go stones ; harmonious dispersal
archaic
Archaic literary term describing a scattered arrangement, especially of islands or Go pieces, often with a sense of balanced or aesthetic distribution. Rare in modern Japanese; mainly encountered in classical texts or poetic descriptions.
棋布 is an old word that describes an arrangement like Go stones scattered on a board.
Written forms 棋き 布ふ
Archaic kanji spelling; the first character 棋 means 'Go' or 'board game', and 布 means 'spread' or 'distribute'.
棊き 布ふ
Variant kanji form using 棊, an older variant of 棋.
Kanji 棋 chess piece, Japanese chess, shogi Similar words 散さん 在ざい 散在 is a common modern word for 'scattered existence' or 'dotted with', without the aesthetic or balanced nuance of 棋布.
点てん 在ざい 点在 is a neutral modern term for 'dotted about' or 'interspersed', lacking the literary and archaic flavor of 棋布.
Etymology Compound of 棋 (Go, board game) and 布 (spread, distribute), literally 'spread like Go stones'. The exact historical derivation is uncertain; the term appears in classical Japanese and Chinese-influenced literary contexts.