神木

Chinese
 
God; unusual; mysterious; soul; spirit; divine essence; lively; spiritual being
 tree; wood
simp. and trad.
(神木)		 神 木

Pronunciation

Noun

神木

  1. sacred tree

Proper noun

神木

  1. (～縣) Shenmu County (county in Shaanxi province, China)

Japanese

Etymology 1
神木 (shinboku, kanki): a sacred tree encircled with a shimenawa belt.
Kanji in this term
神 木
しん
Grade: 3		 ぼく
Grade: 1
on’yomi

Possibly from Middle Chinese 神木 (MC ʑiɪn muk̚, literally “god + tree”). Compare modern Min Nan reading sîn-bo̍k. The Japanese term uses the kan'on, suggesting a later borrowing.

Alternatively, may have been coined in Japan as a compound of Middle Chinese-derived elements, as 神 (shin, “god, spirit”) + 木 (boku, “tree”).

Pronunciation

Noun

神木 (hiragana しんぼく, rōmaji shinboku)

  1. a sacred or holy tree
Synonyms

Etymology 2
Kanji in this term
神 木
かむ > かん
Grade: 3		 き
Grade: 1
kun’yomi

/kamuki/ → /kaɴki/

From Old Japanese. Originally a compound of 神 (kamu, “god, spirit”, ancient combining reading) +‎ 木 (ki, “tree”).[2] Appears with the older kamuki phonetic rendering in the Man'yōshū poetry compilation completed in 759 CE.

Pronunciation

Noun

神木 (hiragana かんき, rōmaji kanki)

  1. (obsolete) (see shinboku above)
Usage notes

Superseded by the shinboku reading above.

Etymology 3
Kanji in this term
神 木
さか
Grade: 3		 き
Grade: 1
Irregular

Alternative spelling of 榊 (sakaki) as jukujikun (熟字訓), likely based on a partial decomposition of the 榊 character into its 神 and 木 components.

Pronunciation
  • (Irregular reading)

Noun

神木 (hiragana さかき, rōmaji sakaki)

  1. (rare) the sakaki tree, Cleyera japonica

References
  1. 2006, 大辞林 (Daijirin), Third Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN
  2. 1988, 国語大辞典（新装版） (Kokugo Dai Jiten, Revised Edition) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan
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