琴

Translingual

Han character

琴 (Kangxi radical 96, 玉+8, 12 strokes, cangjie input 一土人戈弓 (MGOIN), four-corner 1120₇, composition ⿱玨今)

References

• Kangxi Dictionary: page 735, character 11
• Dai Kanwa Jiten: character 21079
• Dae Jaweon: page 1147, character 8
• Hanyu Da Zidian (first edition): volume 2, page 1119, character 7
• Unihan data for U+7434

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Chinese

trad.		琴
simp. #		琴
alternative forms		珡 𤦡 𤩟 琹 𨨖 珡 𤦡 𤩟 琹 𨨖 𨪖 𩰔 䦦 𤫍 𨫹 䥅 䥆 𤫒

Glyph origin

Historical forms of the character 琴
Shuowen Jiezi (compiled in Han)
Small seal script

Characters in the same phonetic series (今) (Zhengzhang, 2003) 

	Old Chinese
貪	*kʰl'uːm
嗿	*l̥ʰuːmʔ
僋	*l̥ʰuːms, *luːms
酓	*qʰɯːm, *qlamʔ, *qlɯːms
馠	*qʰɯːm
谽	*qʰɯːm
唅	*qʰɯːm, *ɡɯːms
含	*ɡɯːm
肣	*ɡɯːm, *ɡɯːmʔ
頷	*ɡɯːm, *ɡɯːmʔ
筨	*ɡɯːm
梒	*ɡɯːm
鋡	*ɡɯːm
莟	*ɡɯːmʔ, *ɡɯːms
琀	*ɡɯːms
浛	*ɡɯːms
盦	*qɯːm, *qaːb
韽	*qɯːm, *qrɯːms
玪	*krɯːm
妗	*qʰrɯːm, *kʰjam, *qʰlɯːm, *ɡrɯms
欦	*qʰrɯːmʔ, *qʰram, *kʰlam, *kʰlamʔ, *qʰlɯːm
黔	*ɡram, *ɡrɯm
鈐	*ɡram
鳹	*ɡram
雂	*ɡram, *ɡrɯm
念	*nɯːms
梣	*sɡɯm, *sɡrɯm
枔	*sɢrɯm
岑	*sɡrɯm
笒	*sɡrɯm, *ɡrɯms
涔	*sɡrɯm
侺	*ɡjɯms
今	*krɯm
黅	*krɯm
衿	*krɯm
衾	*kʰrɯm
坅	*kʰrɯmʔ
搇	*kʰrɯms
琴	*ɡrɯm
禽	*ɡrɯm
芩	*ɡrɯm
庈	*ɡrɯm
耹	*ɡrɯm
靲	*ɡrɯm
擒	*ɡrɯm
檎	*ɡrɯm
紟	*ɡrɯms
吟	*ŋɡrɯm, *ŋɡrɯms
訡	*ŋɡrɯm
廞	*qʰrɯm, *qʰrɯmʔ
陰	*qrɯm
霠
飲	*qrɯmʔ, *qrɯms
蔭	*qrɯms
廕	*qrɯms
矜	*ɡrɯn, *ɡɯn, *kɯŋ

Phono-semantic compound (形聲／形声, OC *ɡrɯm) : semantic 珡 + phonetic 今 (OC *krɯm).

Etymology 1

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Definitions

(deprecated template usage) 琴

1. (music) qin (“Chinese zithers”), referring to any of several traditional Chinese musical instruments, most famously the guqin
2. ^† to play the qin

   • 象往入舜宮，舜在床琴。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     象往入舜宫，舜在床琴。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: Mencius, c. 4^th century BCE

     Xiàng wǎng rù Shùn gōng, Shùn zài chuáng qín. [Pinyin]

     Xiang entered Shun's room, and found Shun on his bed playing the zither.

3. (music) collective name for certain musical instruments, usually of string or keyboard types, such as piano, organ, violin, cello, huqin, accordion, harmonica, etc.

Descendants

• → Burmese: ခင် (hkang)
• → English: qin
• → Thai: ขิม (kǐm) (via Min Nan)

Etymology 2

See 琴日.

Pronunciation

• Cantonese (Jyutping): kam⁴

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• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)
    • Jyutping: kam⁴
    • Yale: kàhm
    • Cantonese Pinyin: kam⁴
    • Guangdong Romanization: kem⁴
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /kʰɐm²¹/

Definitions

(deprecated template usage) 琴

1. (Cantonese) yesterday

Compounds

(deprecated template usage)

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Japanese

Kanji

琴

(common “Jōyō” kanji)

1. zither
2. any stringed or keyboard instrument

Readings

• Go-on: ごん (gon)^{←ごん (gon, historical)←ごむ (gomu, ancient)}
• Kan-on: きん (kin, Jōyō)^{←きん (kin, historical)←きむ (kimu, ancient)}
• Kun: こと (koto, 琴, Jōyō)

Compounds

Compounds

• 琴棋(きんき), 琴碁(きんき) (kinki)
  • 琴棋書画(きんきしょが) (kinkishoga)
• 琴(きん)曲(きょく) (kinkyoku, “koto music”)
• 琴弦(きんげん), 琴絃(きんげん) (kingen)
• 琴(きん)瑟(しつ) (kinshitsu, “qin and se → "marital harmony"”)
• 玉琴(ぎょっきん) (gyokkin)
• 奚(けい)琴(きん) (keikin, “xiqin”)
• 携(けい)琴(きん) (keikin)
• 月琴(げっきん) (gekkin, “yueqin”)
• 古琴(こきん) (kokin, “guqin”)
• 自(じ)鳴(めい)琴(きん) (jimeikin, “music box”)
• 焦尾琴(しょうびきん) (shōbikin)
• 弾琴(だんきん) (dankin, “koto playing”)
• 提(てい)琴(きん) (teikin, “tiqin”)
• 鉄琴(てっきん) (tekkin, “metallophone”)
• 手風琴(てふうきん) (tefūkin, “accordion”)
• 二弦琴(にげんきん) (nigen-kin)
• 馬頭琴(ばとうきん) (batōkin)
• 口琴(びやぼん) (biyabon, “Edo-period mouth harp”)
• 風琴(ふうきん) (fūkin, “organ”)
• 木琴(もっきん) (mokkin, “xylophone”)
• 洋琴(ようきん) (yōkin, “yangqin”)
• 和琴(わごん) (wagon)

Etymology 1

琴 (koto): a Japanese koto, a kind of zither.

Kanji in this term
琴
こと Grade: S
kun'yomi

⟨ko₂to₂⟩ → */kətə/ → /koto/

From Old Japanese, attested in the three major literature works of the Nara period: the Kojiki (712 CE), the Nihon Shoki (720 CE), and the Man'yōshū (c. 759 CE).

Possibly derived from a compound of elements 木 (ko, “tree, wood”, combining form) +‎ 音 (oto, “sound”), with the additional medial o dropped by haplology.

Alternative forms

• (Japanese zither): 箏

Noun

琴(こと) • (koto) 

1. a koto (Japanese zither)
   • 711–712, Kojiki, poem 74:

     加良怒袁(からのを)志本爾夜岐(しほにやき)斯賀阿麻理(しがあまり)許登(こと)爾都久理(につくり)賀岐比久夜(かきひくや)由良能斗能(ゆらのとの)斗那賀能伊久理爾(となかのいくりに)布禮多都(ふれたつ)那豆能紀能(なづのきの)佐夜佐夜(さやさや) [Man'yōgana]

     枯(から)野(の)を塩(しほ)に焼(や)き其(し)が余(あま)り琴(こと)に作(つく)り掻(か)き弾(ひ)くや由良(ゆら)の門(と)の門(と)中(なか)のいくりに振(ふ)れ立(た)つなづの木(き)のさやさや [Modern spelling]

     Karano o shio ni yaki shi ga amari koto ni tsukuri kakihiku ya Yura-no-to no tonaka no ikuri ni furetatsu nazu no ki no sayasaya

     (please add an English translation of this example)

2. (colloquial) a guzheng, zheng (Chinese zither), where the koto was based on [since after the Edo period]

   Synonym: 箏 (sō)

Derived terms

Derived terms

• 琴(こと)頭(がみ) (kotogami)
• こと座(ざ) (Koto-za, “Lyra”)
• 琴(こと)柱(じ) (kotoji, “bridge of a koto”)
• 琴(こと)尾(じり),
• 琴爪(ことづめ) (kotozume, “koto plectrum”)
• 琴鳥(ことどり) (kotodori, “superb lyrebird”)
• 琴(こと)弾(ひ)き (kotohiki)
• 東(あずま)琴(ごと) (azumagoto)
• 出雲(いずも)琴(ごと) (Izumo-goto)
• 須磨(すま)琴(ごと) (Suma-goto)
• 小(お)琴(ごと) (ogoto)
• 百済(くだら)琴(ごと) (Kudara-goto)
• 新羅(しらぎ)琴(ごと) (Shiragi-goto)
• 箏(そう)の琴(こと) (sō no koto)
• 大正(たいしょう)琴(ごと) (Taishō-goto)
• 竪琴(たてごと) (tategoto)
• 玉(たま)琴(ごと) (tamagoto)
• 琵琶(びわ)琴(ごと) (Biwa-goto)
• 八雲(やくも)琴(ごと) (yakumo-goto)
• 大和(やまと)琴(ごと) (Yamato-goto)

Proper noun

琴(こと) • (Koto) 

1. a female given name

Etymology 2

Kanji in this term
琴
きん Grade: S
kan'on

/kim/ → /kimʉ/ → /kiɴ/

From Middle Chinese 琴 (MC gim). The kan'on pronunciation, so likely a later borrowing.

Noun

琴(きん) • (kin) 

1. a guqin, qin (seven-stringed Chinese zither)

   Synonym: 古琴 (kokin)

Derived terms

Derived terms

• 琴線(きんせん) (kinsen, “koto string → heartstrings”)
• 一(いち)弦琴(げんきん), 一(いち)絃琴(げんきん) (ichigenkin)
• 七(しち)弦琴(げんきん), 七(しち)絃琴(げんきん) (shichigenkin)
• 二弦琴(にげんきん), 二絃琴(にげんきん) (nigenkin)
• 六(ろく)弦琴(げんきん), 六(ろく)絃琴(げんきん) (rokugenkin)

Proper noun

琴(きん) • (Kin) 

1. a female given name
2. a surname

See also

• 箏(そう) (sō, “guzheng, zheng”): a Chinese zither similar to the Japanese koto
• 瑟(しつ) (shitsu, “se”): another kind of ancient Chinese zither

Etymology 3

Various nanori readings.

Proper noun

琴(くむ) • (Kumu) 

1. a surname

琴(ぐん) • (Gun) 

1. a surname

琴(ことえ) • (Kotoe) 

1. a female given name

琴(ことざき) • (Kotozaki) 

1. a surname

琴(ことみ) • (Kotomi) 

1. a female given name

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Korean

Hanja

琴 • (geum) (hangeul 금, revised geum, McCune–Reischauer kŭm, Yale kum)

1. This term needs a translation to English. Please help out and add a translation, then remove the text {{rfdef}}.

Compounds

• 伽倻琴 (가야금, gayageum, kayagŭm)

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Vietnamese

Han character

(deprecated template usage) 琴 (cầm)

1. This term needs a translation to English. Please help out and add a translation, then remove the text {{rfdef}}.