都鳥

Japanese

Kanji in this term
みやこ
Grade: 3
とり > どり
Grade: 2
kun'yomi
Alternative spelling
(kyūjitai)

Etymology

Literally, capital bird, (みやこ) (miyako, the Capital) + (とり) (tori, bird). The tori changes to dori as an instance of rendaku (連濁).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): [mʲija̠ko̞do̞ɾʲi]

Noun

(みやこ)(どり) or 都鳥(ミヤコドリ) • (miyakodori

  1. Eurasian oystercatcher, Haematopus ostralegus
  2. (archaic, poetic) synonym of 百合鴎 (yuri kamome, black-headed gull, Chroicocephalus ridibundus)
  3. (by extension, in allusion to the Tale of Ise) a person from the capital
  4. synonym of 都鳥貝 (miyakodori-gai, Phenacolepas pulchella)

Usage notes

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