蟷螂

Japanese

Etymology 1
Kanji in this term
蟷 螂
Hyōgaiji Hyōgaiji
Irregular

Either a compound of 鎌 (kama, “sickle”) +‎ 切り (kiri, “cutting; cutter”, the 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “continuative or stem form”) of verb 切る (kiru, “to cut”)), or of 鎌 (kama, “sickle”) +‎ キリ (kiri, onomatopoeia), where the kiri is imitative of the sound made by grasshoppers and katydids, and is found as a common element in the names of several insects of similar size and body shape. Compare 螽斯 (kirigirisu, “grasshopper; katydid”), 笹切 (sasakiri, “bush cricket; katydid”).

Considering the sharp forelegs of the mantis, the first derivation may be more probable.

The kanji are jukujikun (熟字訓), from Chinese 蟷螂.

Pronunciation

Alternative forms

Noun

蟷螂 (hiragana かまきり, katakana カマキリ, rōmaji kamakiri)

  1. a mantis (any of various large insects of the order Mantodea)
  2. (by extension, from the slender build of the insect) a skinny person or horse
  3. (rare) a fourspine sculpin, a fish of species Cottus kazika
Synonyms
  • (fish): 鮎 (あゆ)掛 (かけ) (ayukake)
Usage notes

As with many terms that name organisms, this term is often spelled in katakana, especially in biological contexts, as カマキリ.

For the fourspine sculpin sense, the more common kanji spellings are 鎌切 and 杜父魚.[4][1]

Etymology 2
Kanji in this term
蟷 螂
とう
Hyōgaiji		 ろう
Hyōgaiji
on’yomi

From Middle Chinese 螳螂 (MC dɑŋ lɨɐŋ|lɑŋ).

Pronunciation

Alternative forms

Noun

蟷螂 (hiragana とうろう, rōmaji tōrō, historical hiragana たうらう)

  1. a mantis
Derived terms
  • 蟷 (とう)螂 (ろう)が斧 (おの)を取 (と)りて隆 (りゅう)車 (しゃ)に向 (む)かう (tōrō ga ono o torite ryūsha ni mukau): “the mantis takes [up] its hatchets and faces off against a grand chariot” → a metaphor for a futile endeavor; compare English piss in the wind, quixotic
  • 蟷 (とう)螂 (ろう)が斧 (おの)をもって隆 (りゅう)車 (しゃ)に向 (む)かう (tōrō ga ono o motte ryūsha ni mukau): “the mantis takes [up] its hatchets and faces off against a grand chariot” → a metaphor for a futile endeavor; compare English piss in the wind, quixotic
  • 蟷 (とう)螂 (ろう)の斧 (おの) (tōrō no ono): “the mantis's hatchets” → a metaphor for a futile endeavor; compare English piss in the wind, quixotic

References
  1. 2006, 大辞林 (Daijirin), Third Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN
  2. 1997, 新明解国語辞典 (Shin Meikai Kokugo Jiten), Fifth Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN
  3. 1998, NHK日本語発音アクセント辞典 (NHK Japanese Pronunciation Accent Dictionary) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: NHK, →ISBN
  4. 1988, 国語大辞典（新装版） (Kokugo Dai Jiten, Revised Edition) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan
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