noun
ancient Japan; Yamato kingdom
Historical term for the early Japanese state centered in the Yamato region; often used in contexts of ancient history or mythology.
大和朝廷は4世紀ごろに成立したとされる。
The Yamato court is said to have been established around the 4th century.
noun
Yamato Province
Historical province corresponding to present-day Nara Prefecture; often appears in historical or geographical contexts.
大和国は現在の奈良県にあたる。
Yamato Province corresponds to present-day Nara Prefecture.
noun
Only when written 大和
Refers specifically to the WWII-era Imperial Japanese Navy battleship Yamato; restricted to the 大和 spelling.
戦艦大和は1945年に沈没した。
The battleship Yamato was sunk in 1945.
The reading やまと is of native Japanese origin, predating the introduction of kanji. The kanji 大和 (literally 'great harmony') were applied later as a phonetic and semantic match. The alternate kanji 倭 was used in early Chinese records to refer to Japan.