大山積神

Etymology

Originally a compound of 大 (ō, “great”) +‎ 山 (yama, “mountain”) +‎ つ (tsu, Old Japanese possessive particle) +‎ 神 (mi, “god, spirit”) +‎ の (no, possessive particle) +‎ 神 (kami, “god, spirit”, also used as an honorific epithet for gods). The use of 積 (tsumi, “packing; piling; loading”) to spell the tsu mi portion is an example of phonetic ateji.

Pronunciation

• Kun’yomi
  • IPA^(key): [o̞ːja̠ma̠t͡sɨᵝmʲi no̞ ka̠mʲi]

Proper noun

大山積神 (hiragana おおやまつみのかみ, rōmaji Ōyamatsumi No Kami, historical hiragana おほやまつみのかみ)

1. 大山祇: (mythology, Shinto) the kami of the mountains, brother of Amaterasu, Tsukuyomi, and Susanoo