かな

See also: がな

Japanese

Etymology 1

Combination of か (ka, interrogative particle) +‎ な (na, mild exclamatory particle).

First attested in the late-Edo period as an apparent shift in sense from the Old Japanese and classical usage, wherein the な (na) came to express more a sense of mild doubt rather than admiration (see that section for more).

Particle

かな • (ka na) 

1. [from early 1800s] expresses a question with a feeling of worry

   彼(かれ)は怪(あや)しい人(ひと)かな。 ― Kare wa ayashii hito ka na. ― I wonder if he's a suspicious person.

   まあ、そうかな。 ― Mā, sō ka na. ― Well, maybe so.

2. expresses skepticism: really?, is it?
3. (in the form ～ないかな (...nai ka na)) expresses affirmation: I hope, I wish
4. expresses confusion

Etymology 2

Alternative spelling
哉

From Old Japanese. First attested in the early 700s.

From か (ka, particle indicating doubt or uncertainty) +‎ な (na, mild exclamatory particle).

Displaced particle かも (ka mo) around the early-Middle Japanese stage.

Particle

かな • (ka na) 

1. [from early 700s] (Classical Japanese or literary) expresses wonder or postulation on the part of the speaker

   善(よ)き哉(かな)！

   Yoki ka na!

   Wonderful!

Usage notes

Still used in contexts that deliberately evoke a classical or literary sense, such as poetry.

Derived terms

Derived terms

• 哉(かな)留(ど)まり (kanadomari)
• 宜(うべ)なるかな (ubenaru kana)
• 売(う)らんかな (uran kana)
• 惜(お)しいかな (oshii kana)
• 現(げん)在(ざい)の哉(かな) (genzai no kana)
• 幸(さいわ)いなるかな (saiwai naru kana)
• 果(は)たせるかな (hataseru kana)
• 宜(むべ)なるかな (mubenaru kana)
• 已(や)んぬるかな (yannuru kana)
• 善(よ)いかな (yoi kana)

Etymology 3

For pronunciation and definitions of かな – see the following entries.

【仮名】 [noun] a category of Japanese syllabary scripts: kana [noun] a syllabogram, an individual character belonging to one of the syllabaries: kana Alternative spelling 仮字

【縢】H [noun] (historical, sewing) thread

【鉋】H [noun] (woodworking tools, possibly dialect) a plane

(This term, かな (kana), is the hiragana spelling of the above terms.) For a list of all kanji read as かな, see Category:Japanese kanji read as かな.)

Etymology 4

For pronunciation and definitions of かな – see the following entries.

【香奈】 [proper noun] a female given name

【佳奈】 [proper noun] a female given name

【加奈】 [proper noun] a female given name

(This term, かな (kana), is the hiragana spelling of the above terms.) For a list of all kanji read as かな, see Category:Japanese kanji read as かな.)