革命

• Reading: かくめい
• Romaji: kakumei
• Kanji breakdown: 革 (kaku) — leather, reform, renew; 命 (mei) — life, fate, mandate
• Pronunciation: /ka.kɯ.meː/

Meaning

Revolution. A fundamental and often sudden change in political power, social structure, or a field of endeavour.

A noun referring to revolution, both in the political sense (overthrow of a government) and metaphorically (a dramatic transformation in any field). Extremely versatile — used for historical events like フランス革命 (Furansu kakumei, French Revolution), ideological concepts like 産業革命 (sangyou kakumei, Industrial Revolution), and modern innovations like IT革命 (IT kakumei, IT revolution). Stronger than 改革 (kaikaku, reform) — implies a complete overturning rather than gradual change.

Examples

1. フランス革命は世界の歴史を大きく変えた。 The French Revolution dramatically changed world history.
2. スマートフォンは通信の革命をもたらした。 The smartphone brought about a revolution in communications.
3. 若者たちが革命を起こそうと立ち上がった。 Young people rose up to start a revolution.

Usage Guide

Context: history, politics, technology

Tone: neutral

Origin & History

From Sino-Japanese: 革 (kaku, reform/renew) + 命 (mei, life/mandate). In classical Chinese, 革命 originally referred to the 'changing of the Mandate of Heaven' — the idea that a corrupt dynasty loses its divine right to rule. This concept was reinterpreted in modern times to match the Western concept of revolution.

Cultural Context

Era: Ancient

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal