海かい神じん

also: かいしん · わたつみ · わだつみ

か

い

じ

ん

Freq.FrequencyTop 50,000

Meanings

noun

sea god; Poseidon; Neptune

Refers to a deity of the sea in Japanese mythology, or by extension to classical Western sea gods like Poseidon or Neptune. The readings わたつみ and わだつみ are archaic/poetic and specifically denote the Japanese sea god.

海かい神しんポセイドンはギリシャ神しん話わの神かみだ。
The sea god Poseidon is a deity in Greek mythology.
古こ事じ記きには海かい神しんわたつみが登とう場じょうする。
The sea god Watatsumi appears in the Kojiki.

noun

sea; ocean

Only with reading わたつみ / わだつみ

Archaic/poetic use, restricted to the readings わたつみ and わだつみ. Not used in modern standard Japanese; the common word for sea/ocean is 海 (うみ).

わたつみの底そこには龍りゅう宮ぐう城じょうがあると信しんじられていた。
It was believed that the Dragon Palace lay at the bottom of the sea.

See all 6 example sentences ›

Kanji

海sea, ocean
神gods, mind, soul
綿cotton
津haven, port, harbor
見see, hopes, chances

Related words

海かい人じん
海神 (かいしん) is the more standard modern way to write 'sea god,' while 海人 (かいじん) is an archaic variant used for the same deity.

Written forms

海神Usage41%
- かいしん
  Standard kanji spelling; the reading かいしん is the most common modern reading.
- かいじん
  Alternate reading for the same kanji form; less common than かいしん.
- わたつみ
- わだつみ
わだつみUsage48%
Kana spelling for the archaic reading わだつみ, a variant of わたつみ.
綿津見Usage7%
- わたつみ
  Archaic/poetic kanji spelling for the sea god, using ateji. Associated with the reading わたつみ.
- かいじん
- わだつみ
わたつみUsage5%
Kana spelling for the archaic reading わたつみ, used in classical contexts.
ワタツミUsage1%
かいしん

Etymology

海神 is composed of 海 (sea) and 神 (god). The reading わたつみ is of native Japanese origin, likely from 海 (わた) + つ (archaic possessive particle) + 神 (み, an old word for spirit/god). The kanji 綿津見 is ateji for わたつみ.