three countries
General term for any three nations; used in geopolitical or historical contexts.
Representatives from three countries attended this conference.
Three Kingdoms (China, 220–280 CE)
Refers to the historical period of Wei, Shu, and Wu in ancient China.
See also: 魏 (ぎ) · 蜀 (しょく) · 呉 (ご)
China during the Three Kingdoms period was divided into Wei, Shu, and Wu.
Three Kingdoms (Korea, 57 BCE–668 CE)
Refers to the historical period of Goguryeo, Baekje, and Silla on the Korean Peninsula.
See also: 新羅 (しらぎ) · 百済 (くだら) · 高句麗 (こうくり)
During the Three Kingdoms period on the Korean Peninsula, Goguryeo, Baekje, and Silla fought each other.
Japan, China, and India; Japan, Korea, and China; the whole world
Archaic term for the known world, often used in pre-modern texts to refer to the three great civilizations or the entire world.
People in the past considered the three countries to be the entire world.
unparalleled in Japan, China and India; the best in the world
national of a third country · foreign resident in Japan (derogatory, esp. Chinese and Korean)
Triple Alliance
Compound of 三 (three) and 国 (countries). The specific historical references derive from Chinese and Korean historiography.