noun
Refers to the child entitled to inherit a family headship, title, or estate, especially under traditional or historical succession rules.
彼は名家の嫡子として厳しく育てられた。
He was raised strictly as the heir of a distinguished family.
noun
Specifically a child born in wedlock, as opposed to a child born out of wedlock (非嫡出子). Often used in legal or genealogical contexts.
当時の法律では、嫡子と非嫡出子の相続権に差があった。
Under the law at that time, there was a difference in inheritance rights between legitimate and illegitimate children.
From Middle Chinese-derived elements 嫡 (legitimate wife/child) and 子 (child). The term entered Japanese through kanbun and legal texts, retaining its specific meaning of a legitimate child and heir.