Loek van Kooten, MAThis tree was named after a poetry lesson.
いろは紅葉 (iroha-momiji), the Japanese maple, gets its name from something wonderfully playful. Children once counted its 5-7 leaf lobes using the syllables of Japan's most famous poem: い、ろ、は、に、ほ、へ、と. The Iroha poem, written over a thousand years ago, contains every syllable of the Japanese writing system exactly once. A literacy lesson hiding in every leaf. The kanji 紅 (crimson) combines silk (糸) with work (工).
It originally described a deep red dye made from safflower petals, the kind of red that defined luxury in ancient East Asia. When いろは紅葉 (iroha-momiji) turns that exact shade of crimson in autumn, temples across Kyoto fill with visitors chasing the color. What most people don't realize: いろは紅葉 (iroha-momiji) also blooms in spring. Tiny dark crimson flowers hang from its branches before the famous leaves even unfurl. 葉の裂片を「いろはにほへと」と数えることから名づけられたいろは紅葉は、春には花が暗紅色を帯びる。
Ha no retsuhen wo "i-ro-ha-ni-ho-he-to" to kazoeru koto kara nazukerareta iroha-momiji wa, haru ni wa hana ga ankōshoku wo obiru. "The iroha maple (iroha-momiji), named for counting its leaf lobes with the Iroha syllables, bears deep crimson flowers in spring. " Did you know the Japanese maple flowers in spring? What's your favorite Japanese tree? This word is on learn.japanology.nl Kiko the fox teaches it with kanji writing practice and SRS quizzes.
We start with the easy stuff, even if today's word is advanced. #Japanese #LearnJapanese #Kanji #JLPT #WordOfTheDay #Japanology #Momiji #JapaneseMaple #Autumn #Nature #Hanami