任侠

Japanese

Kanji in this term
任	侠
にん Grade: 5	きょう Hyōgaiji
goon	kan’on

Alternative spellings
任俠 仁侠

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ɲ̟ĩŋʲkʲo̞ː]

Noun

任(にん)侠(きょう) • (ninkyō) 

1. chivalry, a chivalrous spirit, inclination to help those weaker than oneself
   • 2015, Konno Bin, Ninkyō byōin [Yakuza hospital]:

     任(にん)侠(きょう)などという言(こと)葉(ば)に騙(だま)されている。どの言(こと)葉(ば)で飾(かざ)ったとしてもヤクザはヤクザなのだ。

     Ninkyō nado to iu kotoba ni damasarete-iru. Dono kotoba de kazatta toshitemo yakuza wa yakuza nanoda.

     They try to trick you with words like chivalry. But no matter what words they dress it up with, yakuza is still yakuza.

2. (attributive) (something of or relating to) yakuza, gangsters

   任(にん)侠(きょう)小(しょう)説(せつ) ― ninkyō shōsetsu ― yakuza novel

   • 2013, Yamada Manabu, Tabi wa hito ni ikiru yorokobi o ataeru mono desu [Travel is what gives life its pleasure]‎^[1], page 64:

     その頃(ころ)の私(わたし)は、高(たか)倉健(くらけん)の「網走番(あばしりばん)外(がい)地(ち)」とか任(にん)侠(きょう)ものが大(だい)好(す)きだったので、山(やま)田(だ)さんを一人(ひとり)で殴(なぐ)り込(こ)みに行(い)かせてなるものかと。

     Sono koro no watashi wa, Takakura Ken no “Abashiri Bangaichi” toka ninkyō mono ga daisuki datta no de, Yamada-san o hitori de nagurikomi ni ikasete naru mono ka to.

     In those days I loved Ken Takakura’s Abashiri Prison and such gangster films, so I didn't want to let Mr. Yamada go out there and beat them up by himself.