北ほく欧おう

ほ

く

お

う

Common wordJLPTN3Freq.FrequencyTop 10,000

Meanings

1

noun

Northern Europe; the Nordic countries; Scandinavia

A broad geographic and cultural term. In Japanese it often refers especially to the Nordic or Scandinavian region, though the exact scope can vary by context.

来らい年ねん、北ほく欧おうを旅りょ行こうする予よ定ていです。

I plan to travel around Northern Europe next year.

北ほく欧おうの家か具ぐはシンプルなデザインで人にん気きがある。

Nordic furniture is popular for its simple design.

Kanji

北north
欧Europe

Related words

北きたヨーロッパ
北ヨーロッパ is the plain, literal phrase for 'Northern Europe', while 北欧 is the more compact Sino-Japanese term that often carries a Nordic cultural nuance.
スカンジナビア
スカンディナビア refers specifically to the Scandinavian peninsula/countries, whereas 北欧 can extend more broadly to all Nordic countries.
ノルディック
北欧 is the everyday Japanese word for Northern Europe/Scandinavia, while ノルディック is a katakana loanword used mainly as a prenominal modifier in set phrases like ノルディックスキー.

Opposites

南なん欧おうN3
南欧 means Southern Europe, the geographic opposite of 北欧 (Northern Europe).

Don't confuse with

欧おう州しゅう
欧州 refers to Europe as a whole, while 北欧 specifically denotes the northern, Nordic part of it.

Word family

北ほく欧おう人じん
Nordic person; Scandinavian; Northern European
北ほく欧おう学がく派は
Stockholm school
北ほく欧おう神しん話わ
Norse mythology

Etymology

A Sino-Japanese compound of 北, 'north', and 欧, used in words relating to Europe or the West; together it means 'Northern Europe'.

北ほく欧おう諸しょ国こく

Nordic countries; Scandinavian countries

北ほく欧おうデザイン

Scandinavian design