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尊王攘夷 (そんのうじょうい, sonnoujoui) Japanese meaning | Kotomora
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まつ
の
志し
士し
たち
の
合あい
言こと
葉ば
だっ
た
。
"Revere the Emperor, expel the barbarians" was the watchword of the patriots in the late Edo period.
His thinking was strongly influenced by the "Revere the Emperor, expel the barbarians" ideology.
Kanji 尊 revered, valuable, precious Related words 倒とう 幕ばく 倒幕 means 'overthrow the shogunate', a related but distinct Bakumatsu goal. 尊王攘夷 focused on imperial reverence and anti-foreign sentiment, while 倒幕 directly targeted the Tokugawa regime.
開かい 国こく 開国 means 'opening the country', the opposite policy of ending isolation and engaging with Western powers, opposed by 尊王攘夷 advocates.
Written forms 尊そん 王のう 攘じょう 夷い
Common variant using 王 (king) instead of 皇 (emperor). Both are historically used.
尊皇攘夷そんのうじょうい
Variant using 皇 (emperor). Less common but still encountered.
Etymology A yojijukugo (four-character compound) combining 尊王 (revere the king/emperor) and 攘夷 (expel the barbarians). The phrase emerged in the late Edo period as a rallying cry for imperial loyalists.