歴史的

• Reading: れきしてき
• Romaji: rekishiteki
• Kanji breakdown: 歴 (reki) — pass through, history; 史 (shi) — history, records; 的 (teki) — adjectival suffix (-al, -ic)
• Pronunciation: /ɾe.ki.ɕi.te.ki/

Meaning

Historic; historical. Describes something of great historical significance, or something related to history in general.

A na-adjective (歴史的な + noun) with two overlapping senses: (1) relating to history in general (歴史的資料 — historical documents), and (2) of momentous historical significance (歴史的な瞬間 — a historic moment). Context usually clarifies which is intended. 歴史的 is extremely common in journalism, academic writing, and public speech. The adverb form 歴史的に (historically speaking) is frequent in analytical writing.

Examples

1. 両国首脳による署名は、歴史的な和解の第一歩として世界に報じられた。 The signing by the leaders of both nations was reported around the world as the first step toward a historic reconciliation.
2. 歴史的な観点から見ると、この地域はつねに紛争の火種を抱えてきた。 From a historical perspective, this region has always harboured the seeds of conflict.
3. そのオリンピックでの記録は歴史的なものとなり、今もなお破られていない。 The record set at those Olympics was historic and has yet to be broken.

Usage Guide

Context: history, journalism, academic writing, sports, politics

Tone: neutral

Origin & History

歴史 (history) + 的 (adjectival suffix meaning -al, -ic, -like). 歴史 is a compound of 歴 (pass through, chronicle) + 史 (history, records). The suffix 的 is a Meiji-era borrowing modelled on Classical Chinese patterns.

Cultural Context

Era: Modern

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal