流る人にん

also: りゅうじん

る

に

ん

Meanings

exile; banished person

Historical term for a person sentenced to exile, especially in pre-modern Japan. Often used in historical or literary contexts.

彼かれは罪つみを犯おかして流る人にんとなり、遠とおい島しまに送おくられた。
He committed a crime and became an exile, sent to a distant island.

noun

vagrant; wanderer; nomad

rare term

Only with reading りゅうじん

Rare reading りゅうじん for a person who wanders without a fixed home. Not commonly used in modern Japanese.

古こ文ぶん書しょには、りゅうじんとして各かく地ちを放ほう浪ろうした者ものの記き録ろくが残のこっている。
Ancient documents record accounts of those who wandered as vagrants across various regions.

Kanji

流current, a sink, flow
人person

Related words

追つい放ほう者しゃ
追放者 is a more general term for an exiled or banished person, while 流人 specifically refers to historical exile, often to a remote island.
放ほう浪ろう者しゃ
放浪者 is the common modern word for a wanderer or vagabond; 流人 with the reading りゅうじん is a rare, archaic equivalent.

Written forms

流人Usage100%
- るにん
  Standard kanji form for the historical exile sense.
- りゅうじん
  Rare reading used for the vagrant/wanderer sense.
りゅうじん

Etymology

Composed of 流 (flow, exile) and 人 (person). The reading るにん is a historical Japanese reading, while りゅうじん is a Sino-Japanese reading. The exact derivation is uncertain, but the term has been used since the Heian period to refer to exiled individuals.