出藍

Japanese
Kanji in this term
出 藍
しゅつ
Grade: 1		 らん
Grade: S
kan’on

Etymology

From Literary Chinese 青出於藍，而青於藍 (qīng chū yú lán, ér qīng yú lán, “blue comes from the indigo plant but is bluer than the plant itself”), form the 荀子 (Junji, “Xunzi”). By surface analysis, 出 (shutsu, “leave, exit”) +‎ 藍 (ran, “indigo”), literally “that which leaves indigo”: namely, the blue dye bluer than the indigo itself, a metaphor for a student exceeding his master from whom he grew and learnt.

Doublet of 青(あお)は藍(あい)より出(い)でて藍(あい)より青(あお)し (ao wa ai yori idete ai yori aoshi) of the same meaning, which is calqued.

Pronunciation
  • (Tokyo) しゅつらん [shùtsúráń] (Heiban – [0])[1]
  • IPA(key): [ɕɨᵝt͡sɨᵝɾã̠ɴ]

Noun

出(しゅつ)藍(らん) • (shutsuran) 

  1. pupil excelling his master

Derived terms

References
  1. Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN
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