盆栽

Chinese

		basin	to force; to stick in; to plant
trad. (盆栽)		盆	栽
simp. ^#(盆栽)		盆	栽

Pronunciation

Mandarin
(Pinyin): pénzāi

(Zhuyin): ㄆㄣˊ ㄗㄞ
Cantonese (Jyutping): pun⁴ zoi¹
Southern Min (Hokkien, POJ): phûn-chai

Mandarin
- (Standard Chinese)⁺
  - Hanyu Pinyin: pénzāi
  - Zhuyin: ㄆㄣˊ ㄗㄞ
  - Tongyong Pinyin: pénzai
  - Wade–Giles: pʻên²-tsai¹
  - Yale: pén-dzāi
  - Gwoyeu Romatzyh: perntzai
  - Palladius: пэньцзай (pɛnʹczaj)
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /pʰən³⁵ t͡saɪ̯⁵⁵/
Cantonese
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
  - Jyutping: pun⁴ zoi¹
  - Yale: pùhn jōi
  - Cantonese Pinyin: pun⁴ dzoi¹
  - Guangdong Romanization: pun⁴ zoi¹
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /pʰuːn²¹ t͡sɔːi̯⁵⁵/
Southern Min
- (Hokkien)
  - Pe̍h-ōe-jī: phûn-chai
  - Tâi-lô: phûn-tsai
  - Phofsit Daibuun: phunzay
  - IPA (Xiamen): /pʰun²⁴⁻²² t͡sai⁴⁴/
  - IPA (Quanzhou): /pʰun²⁴⁻²² t͡sai³³/
  - IPA (Zhangzhou): /pʰun¹³⁻²² t͡sai⁴⁴/
  - IPA (Taipei): /pʰun²⁴⁻¹¹ t͡sai⁴⁴/
  - IPA (Kaohsiung): /pʰun²³⁻³³ t͡sai⁴⁴/

Verb

盆栽

to pot (a plant)

Noun

盆栽

potted plant
bonsai (a miniaturized tree or plant)

Synonyms

(bonsai):

edit

樹仔 / 树仔 (Cantonese)
樹仔頭 / 树仔头 (syu⁶ zai² tau⁴) (Cantonese)
盆景 (pénjǐng)

Descendants

Sino-Xenic (盆栽):

→ Japanese: 盆(ぼん)栽(さい) (bonsai) (see there for further descendants)
→ Korean: 분재(盆栽) (bunjae)

Japanese

Kanji in this term
盆	栽
ぼん Grade: S	さい Grade: S
goon	on'yomi

Etymology

Orthographic borrowing from Chinese 盆栽 (pénzāi) as a kind of calque of the older Japanese term 鉢植え (hachiue, “potted plant”, literally “pot + planting”), based on the synonymous meanings of the individual kanji: 盆 (bon) can refer to a pot, while 栽 (sai) can refer to a plant.

First cited to a collection of 漢詩 (kanshi, “Chinese-style poetry”) from 1832.^[1]

Pronunciation

(Tokyo) ぼんさい [bòńsáí] (Heiban – [0])^[2]
IPA^(key): [bõ̞ɰ̃sa̠i]

Noun

盆(ぼん)栽(さい) • (bonsai)

[from 1832] a potted plant that has been grown and aesthetically trimmed for the purpose of viewing: a bonsai, a dwarf tree

Descendants

→ English: bonsai

References

^ “盆栽”, in 日本国語大辞典 [Nihon Kokugo Daijiten]‎^[1] (in Japanese), concise edition, Tokyo: Shogakukan, 2006
^ Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN

Korean

Hanja in this term
盆	栽

Noun

盆栽 • (bunjae) (hangeul 분재)

hanja form^? of 분재 (“a potted plant that has been grown and aesthetically trimmed for the purpose of viewing; a bonsai, a dwarf tree”)

[KDJ2-1] “盆栽”, in 日本国語大辞典 [Nihon Kokugo Daijiten]‎^[1] (in Japanese), concise edition, Tokyo: Shogakukan, 2006

[DJR-2] Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN

[1]

[2]