麻布

Chinese

		(to have) pins and needles; tingling; hemp (to have) pins and needles; tingling; hemp; numb; to bother	to declare; to announce; to spread to declare; to announce; to spread; to make known; spread; (cotton) cloth
trad. (麻布)		麻	布
simp. #(麻布)		麻	布

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): mábù

  (Zhuyin): ㄇㄚˊ ㄅㄨˋ

• Cantonese (Jyutping): maa⁴ bou³
• Hakka

  (Sixian, PFS): mà-pu

  (Meixian, Guangdong): ma² bu⁴

• Southern Min

  (Hokkien, POJ): môa-pò͘

  (Leizhou, Leizhou Pinyin): mua⁵ beu³

---

• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: mábù
    • Zhuyin: ㄇㄚˊ ㄅㄨˋ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: mábù
    • Wade–Giles: ma²-pu⁴
    • Yale: má-bù
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: mabuh
    • Palladius: мабу (mabu)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /mä³⁵ pu⁵¹/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: maa⁴ bou³
    • Yale: màh bou
    • Cantonese Pinyin: maa⁴ bou³
    • Guangdong Romanization: ma⁴ bou³
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /maː²¹ pou̯³³/
• Hakka
  • (Sixian, incl. Miaoli and Meinong)
    • Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: mà-pu
    • Hakka Romanization System: maˇ bu
    • Hagfa Pinyim: ma² bu⁴
    • Sinological IPA: /ma¹¹ pu⁵⁵/
  • (Meixian)
    • Guangdong: ma² bu⁴
    • Sinological IPA: /ma¹¹ pu⁵³/
• Southern Min
  • (Hokkien)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: môa-pò͘
    • Tâi-lô: muâ-pòo
    • Phofsit Daibuun: moa'pox
    • IPA (Xiamen): /muã²⁴⁻²² pɔ²¹/
    • IPA (Quanzhou): /muã²⁴⁻²² pɔ⁴¹/
    • IPA (Zhangzhou): /muã¹³⁻²² pɔ²¹/
    • IPA (Taipei): /muã²⁴⁻¹¹ pɔ¹¹/
    • IPA (Kaohsiung): /muã²³⁻³³ pɔ²¹/
  • (Leizhou)
    • Leizhou Pinyin: mua⁵ beu³
    • Sinological IPA: /mua²² pɛu²¹/

Noun

麻布

1. linen cloth; hemp cloth

Derived terms

• 粗麻布 (cūmábù)
• 麻布袋 (mábùdài)

 

Japanese

麻布 (asanuno, asafu, mafu): an example of hempen cloth from southern China.

Etymology 1

Kanji in this term
麻	布
あさ Grade: S	ぬの Grade: 5
kun’yomi

Compound of Old Japanese elements 麻 (asa, “hemp, ramie”) +‎ 布 (nuno, “woven cloth other than silk”).

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) あさぬの [àsánúnó] (Heiban – [0])
• IPA^(key): [a̠sa̠nɯ̟ᵝno̞]

Noun

麻(あさ)布(ぬの) • (asanuno) 

1. cloth woven of hemp or ramie, similar to linen

Usage notes

This appears to be the most common term for hempen cloth.

Etymology 2

Kanji in this term
麻	布
あさ Grade: S	ふ Grade: 5
yutōyomi

Compound of 麻 (asa, “hemp, ramie”) +‎ 布 (fu, “woven cloth”). This uses the on'yomi of fu for 布, deriving from Middle Chinese 布 (pu^H); compare modern Mandarin reading bù.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [a̠sa̠ɸɯ̟ᵝ]

Noun

麻(あさ)布(ふ) • (asafu) 

1. (obsolete) cloth woven of hemp or ramie, similar to linen

Usage notes

This term appears to be used in modern Japanese. It is not included in the Shinmeikai monolingual Japanese dictionary, nor in the Daijirin monolingual Japanese dictionary.

Etymology 3

Kanji in this term
麻	布
あざ Grade: S	ぶ Grade: 5
irregular

Most likely a compound of Old Japanese elements 麻 (asa, “hemp, ramie”) +‎ 生 (fu, “place where things grow”), given that the Azabu area was known in ancient times as a place for growing hemp or ramie.

This fu element also appears in terms such as 粟生 (awafu, “a field for growing millet”) and 豆生, 豆田 (mamefu, “a field for growing beans”). The use of 布 to spell the fu portion would be an example of ateji, probably influenced by the way that hemp is used to make cloth (布).

The reasons for the shift in pronunciation from asafu to azabu remain unclear.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [a̠za̠bɯ̟ᵝ]

Proper noun

麻(あざ)布(ぶ) • (Azabu) 

1. Azabu, an area in Minato ward, Tokyo

Adjective

麻(あざ)布(ぶ) • (azabu) -na (adnominal 麻(あざ)布(ぶ)な (azabu na), adverbial 麻(あざ)布(ぶ)に (azabu ni))

1. (dated) of unknown intent

   This usage developed from the idiom. See Idioms below for details.

   • 何事も麻布にて、様々どうらくをなし給ふ

     なにごともあざぶにて、さまざまどうらくをなしたまふ

     Nanigoto mo azabu ni te, samazama dōraku o nashitamau...

     Everything of [his] real intentions is unknown, and [he] amuses himself with various diversions...

Idioms

• 麻布(あざぶ)で気(き)が知(し)れぬ (azabu de ki ga shirenu): “you can't figure out the feeling [intent] in Azabu” → based on a pun on the phrase “you can't figure out [identify] the trees in Azabu”, substituting 気 (ki, “sense, intent, feeling”) for 木 (ki, “tree”), appearing in print in 1763. This derives from the way that the Azabu area includes the Roppongi neighborhood. Although Roppongi is spelled as 六本木 (“six trees”), there have not been any trees in the area that would match this description for quite some time.

Etymology 4

Kanji in this term
麻	布
ま Grade: S	ふ Grade: 5
on’yomi

From Middle Chinese compound 麻布 (mæ pu^H). Compare modern Mandarin reading mábù.

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) ま​ふ [máꜜfù] (Atamadaka – [1])
• IPA^(key): [ma̠ɸɯ̟ᵝ]

Noun

麻(ま)布(ふ) • (mafu) 

1. (rare) cloth woven of hemp or ramie, similar to linen

Usage notes

This term appears to be less commonly used. It is not included in the Shinmeikai monolingual Japanese dictionary.