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鳳駕 (ほうが, houga) Japanese meaning: imperial carriage | Kotomora

鳳ほう駕が

ほ

う

が

Meanings

1

imperial carriage

Archaic and literary term for the carriage of an emperor or high-ranking noble. Not used in modern everyday Japanese.

古ふるい文ぶん献けんには、天皇てんのうの鳳ほう駕がが都みやこを出でる場ば面めんが描えがかれている。
Old documents depict a scene where the emperor's imperial carriage leaves the capital.

Kanji

鳳male mythical bird
駕vehicle, palanquin, litter

Related words

御お車くるま
Also an archaic term for an imperial carriage, but 鳳駕 specifically evokes the phoenix motif associated with the emperor.
馬ば車しゃ
Common modern word for a horse-drawn carriage, without the imperial or archaic connotation.

Etymology

Composed of 鳳 (hou, 'phoenix', a symbol of the emperor) and 駕 (ga, 'vehicle' or 'carriage'). The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but the compound is conventionally associated with the imperial carriage in classical Chinese and Japanese texts.