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千本鳥居 (せんぼんとりい) Japanese meaning | Kotomora

千せん本ぼん鳥とり居い

also: せんぼんどりい

せ

ん

ぼ

ん

と

り

い

Meanings

1

noun

rows of torii gates; torii corridor

Refers to a path lined with many torii gates, famously at Fushimi Inari Shrine in Kyoto. Often used in travel contexts.

伏ふし見み稲荷いなり大たい社しゃの千せん本ぼん鳥とり居いはとても有ゆう名めいです。
The rows of torii gates at Fushimi Inari Taisha are very famous.
千せん本ぼん鳥とり居いをくぐりながら山

やま

を

登のぼ

っ

た

。

We climbed the mountain while passing through the torii corridor.

Written forms

千本鳥居
- せんぼんとりい
  Standard kanji spelling. The reading せんぼんとりい is the most common pronunciation.
- せんぼんどりい
  Alternate reading with rendaku (voicing of とりい to どりい). Less common but still encountered.
せんぼんどりい

Kanji

千thousand
本book, present, main
鳥bird, chicken
居reside, to be, exist

Similar words

鳥とり居い
A single torii gate, whereas 千本鳥居 refers to many gates in a row.

Etymology

Compound of 千本 (senbon, 'one thousand', used figuratively for 'many') and 鳥居 (torii, 'shrine gate'). The exact origin is uncertain, but it describes the iconic rows of gates at Shinto shrines.