【東】(tou, higashi/east) Japanese Kanji / JLPT N5

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In this time, I will introduce the Kanji character 東.

How to read

① Onyomi (Chinese reading)

The on-readings are

・tō　とう

For example,

・東京　tō-kyō　とうきょう
Tokyo

・東西　tō-zai　とうざい
East and West

・東西南北　tō-zai-nan-boku　とうざいなんぼく
cardinal directions

and so on.

② Kunyomi (Japanese reading)

Next, the kun-reading is

・higashi　ひがし

For example,

・東　higashi　ひがし
east

・真東　ma-higashi　まひがし
due east

・東アジア　higashi-ajia　ひがしあじあ
East Asia (Japan, South Korea, North Korea, China, Taiwan)

and so on.

③ Special reading

Next is a special reading.

・東雲　shinonome　しののめ
Clouds fluttering in the eastern sky at dawn
But we hardly ever use this word in our daily lives.

Meanings

Next is the meaning of the kanji for 東.
This kanji is used in the next meanings

・east

Radical

And the radical of this character is 木　ki.
This character itself is a radical, a basic character.

Family name

Next, I will introduce family names. Here are some family names that are particularly common in Japan.

・東　Higashi, Azuma　ひがし、あずま
・伊東　itō　いとう
・安東　andō　あんどう

Personal name

There are no specific well-known personal names using the Kanji for 東

Famous person

Next, I will introduce Japanese celebrities who use the Kanji 東

・東郷 平八郎　Tōgō Hēhachirō　とうごうへいはちろう
He was a Commander of the Combined Fleet of the former Imperial Japanese Navy

・毛沢東　Mō Taku tō　もうたくとう
He was a President of the People's Republic of China

・黒田 東彦　Kuroda Haruhiko　くろだはるひこ
He is a Governor of the Bank of Japan

・東野 圭吾　Higashino Keigo　ひがしのけいご
He is a writer of mysteries

Look-alikes

Finally, here are some kanji that are similar to 東

・束　tsuka, taba　つか、たば
bundle

↓Other kanji characters can be found in the list here↓

Tags

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