Archaic term for a boy or young man of noble birth, often used as a suffix in male given names or in historical contexts. The female counterpart is 姫 (ひめ).
Many princes and princesses appear in the Kojiki.
Hiko was often used in old male names.
echo (in the mountains) · mountain god; mountain guardian deity
Standard kanji spelling for this archaic noun and suffix.
Kana spelling is sometimes used in modern contexts when the word is explained or used as a name element.
The historical derivation is uncertain; the kanji 彦 is conventionally associated with the meaning 'boy' or 'prince' in ancient Japanese contexts.