土 - Meaning and history | Japanese Kanji

Earth, the element that gives life to the things we eat, its kanji is 土(つち).

Observing the great power of the soil, it was believed that a deity resided in it, the "deity of the earth". This element thus became part of the shrine kanji, the "house of the kami" 社(やしろ).

Saturday is dedicated to this element 土(ど)曜(よう)日(び) and the planet is Saturn 土(ど)星(せい).

土(つち) is also radical in many words and expressions that have to do with the earth.

Earth, geography and geology

The 土(つち) kanji appears with the same form as radical in many other kanji.

• 地(ち)理(り) is the geography where 地(ち) indicates the soil and 理(り) the logos, the reason, the principle
• 地(ち)質(しつ)学(がく) is the study 学 of the nature 質 of the soil 地, i.e. the geology

• 敷(しき)地(ち) is the land, the lot on which to build the house and we also find the term 土(と)地(ち) with the same meaning.

Another kanji that indicates the soil is 土(ど)壌(じょう) and is used for example to translate soil pollution 土(ど)壌(じょう)汚(お)染(せん)

• 地(ち)域(いき) represents the region, the area and indicates the regional community in the expression 地(ち)域(いき)社(しゃ)会(かい)

• 地(ち)方(ほう) is another term that translates the region and also means area and province. The adjective 地(ち)方(ほう)の instead means local, provincial

日本(にほん) の 地(ち)方(ほう)区(く)分(ぶん), subdivision of Japanese regions

• 北(ほっ)海(かい)道(どう)地(ち)方(かた) Hokkaidō
• 東(とう)北(ほく)地(ち)方(ほう) Tōhoku
• 関(かん)東(とう)地(ち)方(ほう) Kantō the Tokyo region
• 中(ちゅう)部(ぶ)地(ち)方(ほう) Chūbu
• 近(きん)畿(き)地(ち)方(ほう) in Kinki we find Kyōto, Nara, Osaka
• 中(ちゅう)国(ごく)地(ち)方(ほう) Chūgoku where Hiroshima is
• 四(し)国(こく)地(ち)方(ほう) Shikoku
• 九(きゅう)州(しゅう) ・ 沖(おき)縄(なわ)地(ち)方(ほう) Kyūshū with Fukuoka and the island of Okinawa

Colors

• 黄(おう)土(ど)色(いろ) this word joins the kanji of yellow 黄(き), earth 土(つち) and color 色(いろ) and translates the ocher
• 土(つち)色(いろ) the color of the earth, ashen

郷(きょう)土(ど) is the native land

• 郷(きょう)土(ど)料(りょう)理(り) is local cuisine, regional, regional specialties

土(ど)器(き) are objects made with clay

母(はは)なる大(だい)地(ち) Mother Earth