also: そんふうし
noun
rural scholar; country pedant
Refers to a scholar or teacher from the countryside, often with a nuance of being narrow-minded or pedantic. Sometimes used derogatorily.
彼は村夫子然とした態度で、都会の学者を見下していた。
With the air of a rural pedant, he looked down on the city scholars.
その村夫子は
That country scholar clung to old teachings and refused to accept new ideas.
儒者 refers specifically to a Confucian scholar, whereas 村夫子 is a broader, often derogatory term for a rural intellectual.
Standard kanji spelling. The reading そんぷうし is the most common; そんふうし is a less frequent variant.
Alternate reading. Less common than そんぷうし.
Compound of 村 (village) and 夫子 (scholar, master). The term likely originated in a context where rural scholars were seen as less sophisticated than their urban counterparts.