法螺貝

Japanese
法螺貝 (horagai): a horn made from a Charonia tritonis shell.
Kanji in this term
法 螺 貝
ほう > ほ
Grade: 4		 ら
Jinmeiyō		 かい > がい
Grade: 1
on’yomi kun’yomi

Etymology

Compound of 法螺 (hora, “boasting, bragging”) +‎ 貝 (kai, “shell, shellfish”).[1][2] The kai changes to gai as an instance of rendaku (連濁).

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium. Particularly: “relation to 哱囉#Chinese? are we sure that 法螺 is the true meaning and not ateji?”)

Pronunciation
  • (Tokyo) ほら​がい [hòráꜜgàì] (Nakadaka – [2])[2]
  • IPA(key): [ho̞ɾa̠ɡa̠i]

Noun

法(ほ)螺(ら)貝(がい) or 法螺貝(ホラガイ) • (horagai) 

  1. a Triton's trumpet, Charonia tritonis
  2. a horn made from a Triton's trumpet shell
  3. by metaphor from the shape of the shell, a way of tying a man's obi

Usage notes

As with many terms that name organisms, this term is often spelled in katakana, especially in biological contexts (where katakana is customary), as ホラガイ.

See also

References
  1. Shōgaku Tosho (1988) 国語大辞典（新装版） [Unabridged Dictionary of Japanese (Revised Edition)] (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan, →ISBN
  2. Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN
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