kokutai

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Japanese 国体(こくたい) (kokutai, literally “national character”).

Pronunciation

Noun

kokutai (uncountable) (Japanese politics, philosophy, chiefly historical)

  2. The national essence and character of Japan viewed as conforming to Shinto-Confucian ideals, with the emperor as its ethical, spiritual, cultural and political center.
  4. The ideology centered on the principle of kokutai.
    Synonyms: kokutai-ism, kokutairon

Usage notes

  • The term is chiefly used in the context of Japanese nationalism from the Meiji Restoration in 1868 until the end of World War 2 in 1945, when the concept of kokutai dominated Japanese political discourse.

Derived terms

  • kokutai-ism
  • kokutairon

Translations

Japanese

Romanization

kokutai

  1. Rōmaji transcription of こくたい
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