Loek van Kooten, MAThe nail that sticks out gets hammered down.
釘 (kugi), one kanji, one of Japan's most powerful proverbs. 出る釘は打たれる (deru kugi wa utareru): "the nail that sticks out gets hammered down. " Stand out, and society will push you back in line. Six words that explain more about Japanese social dynamics than any textbook. The character 釘 (kugi) pairs metal (金) with 丁. In oracle bone inscriptions from over 3,000 years ago, 丁 was drawn as a tiny filled square: the head of a nail, seen from above.
Add the metal radical, and the meaning has not moved a millimeter since. But kugi goes far beyond hardware. 釘付け (kugizuke) means "nailed to the spot": riveted, unable to look away. A thriller scene that keeps you frozen: kugizuke. Then there is 釘を刺す (kugi wo sasu), literally "to drive in a nail", meaning to give someone a firm warning they will not forget. 彼の革新的なアイデアは注目を集めたが、出る釘は打たれるように保守派からの反発を招いた。
Kare no kakushinteki na aidea wa chūmoku wo atsumeta ga, deru kugi wa utareru yō ni hoshu-ha kara no hanpatsu wo maneita. "His innovative ideas attracted attention, but true to the proverb, the nail that sticks out gets hammered down: they drew backlash from the conservatives. " Have you ever been the kugi that stuck out? Or were you the hammer? This word is on learn.japanology.nl - try the quiz with Kiko and see if kugi sticks. We start with the easy stuff, so jump in wherever you are.