Glossary of Japanese words of Dutch origin

Painting by Kawahara Keiga: Arrival of a Dutch Ship. Philipp Franz von Siebold at Dejima with his Japanese wife Kusumoto Otaki and their baby-daughter Kusumoto Ine observing a Dutch ship towed into Nagasaki harbour using a teresukoppu (telescope).

Japanese words of Dutch origin started to develop when the Dutch East India Company initiated trading in Japan from the factory of Hirado in 1609. In 1640, the Dutch were transferred to Dejima, and from then on until 1854 remained the only Westerners allowed access to Japan, during Japan's "sakoku" seclusion period.

Numerous exchanges occurred, leading to a branch of Western learning in Japan known as rangaku (蘭学), or "Dutch learning" where the "ran" (蘭) in rangaku comes from "Oranda" the Japanese word for Holland, and means Dutch while "gaku" (学) is of Sino-Japanese origin and means "Learning".^[1] In the process, a number of terms were adopted from Dutch into the Japanese language. At one point, some 3,000 words are thought to have been used, especially in the areas of technical and scientific vocabulary.^[1] About 160 such words of Dutch origin remain in use today in standard Japanese.^[1]

Japanese transliteration (rōmaji)	Japanese term (kanji or kana)	Dutch term	English term(s)	Details
arukari [2]	アルカリ	alkali	alkali	From Arabic, through Dutch.
arukōru [1]	アルコール	alcohol	alcohol	From Arabic, through Dutch.
asubesuto [2]	アスベスト	asbest	asbestos	From Greek, through Dutch.
bīru [3]	ビール, 麦酒	bier	beer
bisuketto [1]	ビスケット	beschuit	biscuit	Reinforcement of Portuguese biscoito.
bōru [1]	ボール	boor	drill, bore	After 1720.
buriki [2]	ブリキ	blik	tin
chifusu [2]	チフス	tyfus	typhus	From Greek, through Dutch.
dansu	ダンス	dans	dance
doitsu	ドイツ	Duits	German
dokku	ドック	dok	(dry) dock
dontaku [1]	ドンタク	zondag	sunday	Also occasionally found as ゾンタク (zontaku). Appears from the early Meiji period, after 1868.
doronken [2]	ドロンケン	dronken	drunk
ekisu [2]	エキス	extract	extract	Shortened from エキストラクト (ekisutorakuto).
erekishiteito [1]	エレキシテイト	elektriciteit	electricity	Obsolete (replaced by 電気).
erekiteru [2]	エレキテル	corruption of elektriciteit	elekiter	A type of generator of static electricity used for electric experiments in the 18th century
ēteru [1]	エーテル	ether	ether	From Greek, through Dutch.
garasu [3]	ガラス, 硝子	glas	glass, as in a window
gasu [2]	ガス, 瓦斯	gas	gas
giyaman [1]	ギヤマン	diamant	diamond	From Greek, through Dutch.
gomu [1]	ゴム	gom, gum	rubber
gorofukuren [2]	ゴロフクレン, 呉絽服連	grofgrein	grosgrain
hamu [1]	ハム	ham	ham
handon	半ドン, ハンドン	from the "zon" in zondag	half-day; holiday	Compound of Japanese han (half) and dontaku. This word is no longer commonly used in Japanese.
hatoron [2]	ハトロン, パトロン	patroon	pattern
henrūda [2]	ヘンルーダ	wijnruit	Common Rue
hetto [2]	ヘット	vet	beef tallow	Cognate with English fat.
hisuterii	ヒステリー	hysterie	hysteria
hukku [1]	フック	hoek	hook	Cognate with English hook.
infuruenza [1]	インフルエンザ	influenza	influenza	After 1720. More likely borrowed from English. The term originated in Italian, and became common worldwide in the 18th century via English.
inki [2]	インキ	inkt	ink
kamitsure [1]	カミツレ	kamille	camomile	From Greek, through Dutch. After 1720.
kantera [2]	カンテラ	candela, kandelaar	candela
kapitan [1]	カピタン, 甲比丹	kapitein	captain	More likely derived from Portuguese capitão.
karan	カラン	kraan	tap (UK) / faucet (Am.)	Cognate with English crane, from the resemblance of the bird's neck to a faucet pipe.
kari [2]	カリ, カリウム	kali, kalium	potassium
karuki [2]	カルキ	kalk	lime (the chemical), chlorinated lime	Cognate with English chalk.
katēteru [2]	カテーテル	katheter	catheter	From Greek, through Dutch.
kechin [1]	ケチン	ketting	chain	After 1720. Now obsolete (replaced by 鎖 (kusari)).
kiruku [2]	キルク	kurk	cork
kōhī [3]	コーヒー, 珈琲	koffie	coffee	From Arabic, through Dutch.
kokku [2]	コック	kok	cook
koppu [1]	コップ	kop	cup	Reinforcement of Portuguese copo.
konpasu [1]	コンパス	kompas	compass
korera [2]	コレラ	cholera	cholera	From Greek, through Dutch.
kureosōto [2]	クレオソート	creosoot	creosote
koruku [2]	コルク	kurk	cork
madorosu [1]	マドロス	matroos	sailor
masuto [1]	マスト	mast	mast
mesu [1]	メス	mes	scalpel	After 1720.
moruhine [1]	モルヒネ	morfine	morphine	After 1720.
morumotto[4]	モルモット	marmot	Guinea pig; marmot
oburāto [2]	オブラート	oblaat	oblate	Also listed in some Japanese sources as deriving from the cognate German term Oblate.
orugōru [3]	オルゴール	(orgel) muziekdoos	(organ) music box
penki [4]	ペンキ	pek, pik	house paint
pesuto [1]	ペスト	pest	black death	After 1720.
pinto [4]	ピント	punt	focus	Shortened from the longer term brandpunt.
pisutoru [3]	ピストル	pistool	pistol
ponpu [1]	ポンプ	pomp	pump	After 1720.
ponzu [2]	ポン酢	pons	ponzu	The Dutch term pons for the beverage was already obsolescent by 1864, and was eventually superseded by the term punsch or punch.
randoseru [2]	ランドセル	ransel	backpack	From German Ränzel or Low German rensel, through Dutch.
ranpu [2]	ランプ, 洋灯	lamp	lamp	From Greek, through Dutch.
retoruto [2]	レトルト	retort	retort
renzu [2]	レンズ	lens	lens
safuran [2]	サフラン	saffraan	saffron
saten [2]	サテン	satijn	satin
seimi [2]	セイミ, 舎密	chemie	chemistry	Now obsolete, replaced by 化学 (kagaku).
shian [2]	シアン	cyaan	cyan
shiroppu [2]	シロップ	siroop	syrup
sukoppu [4]	スコップ	schop	spade, shovel	Cognate with English scoop.
supoito [2]	スポイト	spuit	syringe	Cognate with English spout.
tarumomētoru [1]	タルモメートル	thermometer	thermometer	From French, through Dutch. After 1720. Now obsolete (replaced by 体温計 (taionkei))
teresukoppu [1]	テレスコップ	telescoop	telescope	From Italian and Modern Latin, through Dutch. After 1720
yojiumu [2]	ヨジウム	jodium	iodine
zukku [2]	ズック	doek	canvas	Cognate with English duck (“piece of cloth”).

See also

• Gairaigo
• List of gairaigo and wasei-eigo terms
• Japanese words of Portuguese origin

References

1. Language contact in Japan: a socio-linguistic history by Leo Loveday, p.54-55
2. Sanseido dual dictionary
3. "Dutch-Japanese Relations," Netherlands Consulate General at Osaka-Kobe
4. Gleeson Introduction to written Japanese, katakana p.36

External links

• Which Japanese words originate from Dutch?