Archaic poetic name for Japan, literally 'eight islands'. Used in classical literature and historical contexts.
In the Kojiki, it is written as 'the Land of the Great Eight Islands'.
Standard kanji spelling for the archaic name of Japan.
Variant spelling; 洲 and 島 both mean 'island'.
From 八島, also written 八洲, an ancient name for Japan. 八 evokes the many islands constituting the country and also recalls the mythic 大八洲.