形代

Japanese
Kanji in this term
形 代
かた
Grade: 2		 しろ
Grade: 3
kun’yomi

Etymology

Compound of 形 (kata, “form, shape, model”) +‎ 代 (shiro, “substitution, replacement”).[1][2]

Pronunciation

Noun

形(かた)代(しろ) • (katashiro) 

  1. (Shinto) a traditional Japanese paper doll used in certain purification rituals
    Synonym: 人形 (hitogata)
  2. a doll or other substitute for a person, used as the target for a prayer or curse
  3. a substitute or stand-in for a person

Coordinate terms
  • 紙(かみ)人(にん)形(ぎょう) (kami ningyō): paper doll (as a toy rather than a ritual object)
  • 流(なが)し雛(びな) (nagashibina): the practice of making dolls out of paper or straw, and sending them on a boat down a river or out to sea, carrying away one's impurities and sins with them.

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

Further reading
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