竜馬

Japanese

Etymology 1

竜馬 (ryūme, ryūma): A shogi piece representing a promoted bishop.
Kanji in this term
竜 馬
りゅう
Grade: S		 め
Grade: 2
on’yomi

From Middle Chinese 龍馬 (ljowng mæX, literally “dragon + horse”). The goon reading, so likely the initial borrowing.

Pronunciation

Noun

竜馬 (shinjitai kanji, kyūjitai kanji 龍馬, hiragana りゅうめ, rōmaji ryūme)

  1. (idiomatic) an excellent horse, a very fast horse
  2. (shogi) a promoted bishop
Synonyms

Etymology 2

Kanji in this term
竜 馬
りゅう
Grade: S		 ま
Grade: 2
on’yomi

Alteration of ryūme above, using the kan'yōon reading of ma for the 馬 character.

Pronunciation

Noun

竜馬 (shinjitai kanji, kyūjitai kanji 龍馬, hiragana りゅうま, rōmaji ryūma)

  1. (shogi) a promoted bishop
Usage notes

The ryūma reading is common, but might be considered by some to be less technically correct than the ryūme reading.[1]

Synonyms

Etymology 3

Kanji in this term
竜 馬
りょう
Grade: S		 ば
Grade: 2
on’yomi

Shift in pronunciation ryūme above. The kan'on for both characters, so probably a re-borrowing from a later stage of Middle Chinese.

Pronunciation

Noun

竜馬 (shinjitai kanji, kyūjitai kanji 龍馬, hiragana りょうば, rōmaji ryōba)

  1. (idiomatic) an excellent horse, a very fast horse
Usage notes

This is a homophone with the synonymous spelling 良馬 (ryōba, literally “good horse”).

Synonyms

Etymology 4

Kanji in this term
竜 馬
りょう
Grade: S		 め
Grade: 2
on’yomi

Alteration of ryūme above, using the kan'on reading of ryō for the 竜 character.

Pronunciation

Noun

竜馬 (shinjitai kanji, kyūjitai kanji 龍馬, hiragana りょうめ, rōmaji ryōme)

  1. (idiomatic) an excellent horse, a very fast horse
Synonyms

Etymology 5

Kanji in this term
竜 馬
りょう
Grade: S		 ま
Grade: 2
on’yomi

Probably an alteration of ryōba above, using the kan'yōon reading of ma for the 馬 character.

Pronunciation

Proper noun

竜馬 (shinjitai kanji, kyūjitai kanji 龍馬, hiragana りょうま, rōmaji Ryōma)

  1. A surname​.

Etymology 6

Kanji in this term
竜 馬
たつ
Grade: S		 うま
Grade: 2
kun’yomi

Compound of 竜 (tatsu, “dragon”) +‎ の (no, possessive particle) +‎ 馬 (uma, “horse”).[3][2] The no is implied in this spelling.

Alternative forms

Pronunciation

Noun

竜馬 (shinjitai kanji, kyūjitai kanji 龍馬, hiragana たつのうま, rōmaji tatsu no uma)

  1. (idiomatic) an excellent horse, a very fast horse
    • c. 759, Man'yōshū (book 5, poem 808), text here
      多都乃麻乎 阿礼波毛等米牟
      たつのまを あれはもとめむ
      Tatsu no ma o / are wa motomemu
      “I would want a dragon horse...”
      (Note that the ancient form of uma was sometimes rendered as ma or muma. See the etymology at 馬 for more details.)
Synonyms

References

  1. ↑ 1995, 大辞泉 (Daijisen) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan, →ISBN
  2. 1 2 2006, 大辞林 (Daijirin), Third Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN
  3. ↑ 1988, 国語大辞典（新装版） (Kokugo Dai Jiten, Revised Edition) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan
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