also: かわろう
river god; river deity
Only when written 河伯
Rare, classical meaning referring to a deity or spirit of a river. Restricted to the kanji form 河伯. Not commonly used in modern Japanese outside of historical or mythological contexts.
Kappa often appear in old tales.
In Chinese mythology, 河伯 is considered the god of the Yellow River.
Primary kanji form for both senses; reading かはく is standard for this spelling.
Alternate kanji form for the kappa sense, read かわろう. Rare and possibly dialectal or folkloric.
The kanji 河 (river) and 伯 (chief, elder) literally mean 'river chief', originally referring to a river deity. The reading かはく is the on'yomi. The form 河郎 (かわろう) uses 郎 (young man) and may be a folk etymology or dialectal variant for the kappa sense.