正座

• 読み: せいざ
• ローマ字: seiza
• 漢字の分解: 正 (sei/tadashii) — correct, proper; 座 (za/suwaru) — to sit, seat
• 発音: /seː.za/

意味

The formal Japanese sitting posture on one's knees; seiza. Sitting with legs folded under, buttocks resting on the heels.

A noun describing the traditional formal seated posture — both legs tucked under with the tops of the feet flat on the floor. Required in tea ceremony, traditional martial arts, and respectful formal situations. Figuratively, 正座させられる (to be made to sit in seiza) means to be called in for a formal scolding.

例文

1. 茶道の稽古では正座で一時間以上過ごすことが多い。
2. 父に呼ばれ、リビングで正座のまま長々と説教を受けた。
3. 足が不自由な方には、正座ではなく椅子での参加が勧められた。

使い方ガイド

場面: traditional culture, tea ceremony, martial arts, manners

トーン: formal

起源と歴史

Compound of 正 (sei, correct/proper) and 座 (za, sitting/seat). The term was standardised in the Meiji era as the officially approved sitting posture in schools and formal settings.

文化的背景

時代: Traditional–Modern

世代: All ages

社会的背景: Universal