noun
young lords; young samurai; young people
Archaic term used in historical contexts to refer to young noblemen, young samurai, or young people in general. Not used in modern Japanese outside of period pieces or classical texts.
In tales of the Warring States period, scenes of young lords walking through the castle town often appear.
古文書に「若殿原」とあるのは、若い武士たちを指している。
In old documents, 'wakatonobara' refers to young samurai.
Another historical term for young samurai, but less broad than 若殿原 which can also mean young lords.
Compound of 若 (waka, 'young') + 殿 (tono, 'lord') + 原 (hara/bara, pluralizing suffix for people). The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but it follows a pattern of archaic plural forms for groups of people.