北

• 読み: きた
• ローマ字: kita
• 漢字の分解: 北 (kita/hoku) — north
• 発音: /ki.ta/

意味

North. One of the four cardinal directions, commonly used in place names and when giving directions.

A noun for the cardinal direction north. Appears in many place names such as 北海道 (Hokkaido, meaning 'northern sea road') and 北口 (north exit). Can be read as きた in native Japanese or ほく in Sino-Japanese compounds like 北極 (hokkyoku, North Pole).

例文

1. 北海道は日本の北にあります。
2. 北口のバス停から出発します。
3. 風が北から吹いて寒いです。

使い方ガイド

場面: directions, place names, geography

トーン: neutral

起源と歴史

From Old Japanese. The kanji 北 originally depicted two people sitting back to back, suggesting turning away — since ancient Chinese faced south, turning away meant facing north.

文化的背景

時代: Ancient

世代: All ages

社会的背景: Universal