also: やつこらま · つぶね
slave; servant; retainer; captive
Only with reading やつこ / つぶね
Archaic term for a person in servitude, including slaves, retainers, and captives. Sense 1 is explicitly archaic; senses 2 and 3 are historical but not marked archaic.
古の世には、やつこは主に仕える身分であった。
In ancient times, a yatsuko was a person who served a master.
戦に敗れ、多くの者がやつことなった。
Defeated in battle, many became captives.
varlet; wretch
Only with reading やつこ
Derogatory archaic term for a lowly or contemptible person.
「このやつこめが」と、殿は怒りをあらわにした。
'You varlet!' the lord exclaimed in anger.
Only with reading やつこ / やつこらま
Humble first-person pronoun used in archaic Japanese, often by servants or low-ranking individuals when addressing superiors.
やつこは、ただ仰せのままに。
I will do as you command.
奴隷 is the standard modern word for a slave, while 臣 is an archaic term covering slaves, servants, and captives alike.
私 is the everyday first-person pronoun, while 臣 is an archaic, extremely humble way to say 'I' used by servants addressing superiors.
僕 and 臣 are both archaic words for a servant or retainer, but 僕 appears more often in classical texts describing personal servants.
家来 specifically means a feudal retainer serving a lord, whereas 臣 is a broader archaic term that can also mean slave or captive.
主人 means the master or lord, the direct opposite of 臣, which denotes the servant or retainer beneath him.
家臣 is a compound noun meaning a feudal vassal or retainer, while 臣 alone is the older, plainer word for a servant, slave, or lowly person.
Archaic kanji spelling for the reading やつこ, used historically for 'slave' or 'servant'.
Archaic kanji spelling for the reading やつこ, also used for 'slave' or 'servant'.
Archaic reading つぶね for 奴, meaning 'slave' or 'servant'.
Archaic kanji spelling for the reading やつこらま, a humble first-person pronoun.
Kana spelling for the reading やつこらま, useful for search but not a common modern written form.
The Old Japanese form やつこ is generally analyzed as 家つ子, literally “child of the household,” referring to a household servant or dependent.