Japanese

Meanings

1. 1
   adj

   relating to Japan, its people, culture, or language

   The exhibition includes Japanese prints from the Edo period.

2. 2
   noun

   the principal language of Japan, a member of the Japonic language family

   She studied Japanese before beginning her exchange year in Kyoto.

3. 3
   noun

   the people of Japan considered collectively

   The Japanese celebrate several national holidays in early May.

From Japan + -ese, influenced by European forms such as Portuguese japones and French japonais. The country name reached English through Portuguese and Malay forms ultimately reflecting an East Asian name written with the characters meaning "sun origin."

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