井守

Japanese
Kanji in this term
井 守
い
Grade: 4		 も(り)
Grade: 3
kun’yomi
Alternative spelling
蠑螈 (rare)
井守 (imori): a salamander or newt.

Etymology

Compound of 井 (i, “well”) +‎ 守り (mori, “protector, guardian”, 連用形 (ren'yōkei, “continuative or stem form”) of verb 守る moru, “to protect, to guard”).[1]

First cited to roughly 900 CE.[1]

Pronunciation

Noun

井(い)守(もり) • (imori) ←ゐもり (wimori)?

  1. 蠑螈: a salamandrid
  2. Short for 赤腹井守 (akahara imori, “Japanese fire belly newt”).
  3. (history) a job title in the Edo period and earlier, referring to an assistant to the 井司 (ishi, literally “well boss”), both jobs in charge of aspects of the irrigation system

Usage notes

As with many terms that name organisms, this term is often spelled in katakana, especially in biological contexts (where katakana is customary), as イモリ.

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