Twice a month, my friend and I organize the event, “Let’s talk about Kyoto in English and Japanese”. Today’s theme was Furoshiki.
I took memo of useful expression 🙂
(All from “Trad Japan” NHK publisher has copy right.)
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Simple, square pieces of cloth like this made of cotton, silk, or other materials…They’re called furoshiki.
木綿や絹などでできた何の変哲もない真四角な布。これが風呂敷です。
Furoshiki are versatile wrapping cloths. Not only are they useful for carrying things, they also make gifts look more attractive.
何でも柔らかく包み込む風呂敷は、荷物を持ち運びしやすくするだけでなく、贈り物を美しく飾る効果もあります。
The word furoshiki comes from the culture of the bath, or furo in Japanese.
風呂敷という呼び名は日本語の「風呂」に由来します。
In the 14th century, when samurai and aristocrats used a communal bath, they would take a change of clothes wrapped in a cloth. After bathing, they would use the cloth as a bath mat on which to get dressed. Shiki means ‘something spread on the floor’, so the cloths used when taking a furo came to be known as furoshiki.
14世紀ころ、武士や貴族が共同風呂に入る時、着物を布に包んで持ち運びました。入浴が終わるとその上で着替えをしました。それが「風呂敷」という名前になったと言われています。
Later, the use of furoshiki spread to ordinary people, and they became an essential item for carrying things.
その後、風呂敷は庶民に広がり、物を運ぶのに欠かせない道具になりました。
Furoshiki can be used to wrap just about anything.
風呂敷は包むものに合わせて自在に形を変えていきます。
They can even be used to wrap bottles of wine.
ワインの瓶などを包むこともできます。
You roll two bottles up in a furoshiki. Then stand them upright, which folds the furoshiki in the middle. Finally, bring the corners together and tie them in a knot. This wrapping method helps to keep fragile bottles from breaking and creates an easy-to-carry handle.
2本の瓶を転がしながら包み、真ん中で折り曲げて、上に結び目をつくります。こうすることで壊れやすい瓶を守りながら、持ちやすい取っ手を作ることができます。
With a furoshiki, there’s also a way to wrap a long box that seems too big for the cloth.
布には不釣り合いな細長い物を包むこともできます。
Bring the near corner and the far corner together, intertwine them, take one end to the left-hand corner and the other to the right-hand corner, and tie a knot at both ends.
前後の角を真ん中で交差させ、左右に振り分けます。それを端の角と結び合わせると、全体を包むことができます。
The fact that a piece of cloth can be folded into various shapes to contain almost any object is the most distinctive characteristic of furoshiki.
１枚の布が、折り方一つでどんなものでも包み込んでしまう。これが風呂敷の最大の特徴です。
Furhisoki used for wrapping gifts often have auspicious patters on them.
贈り物を包む風呂敷には、よく縁起が良い文様が描かれています。
This one depicts pine, bamboo, ume plum, the crane, and the turtle, which all symbolize good fortune.
この風呂敷には縁起のよい文様である、松、竹、梅、鶴、亀が描かれています。
It’s traditionally believed that wrapping a gift with a cloth featuring auspicious symbols like these keeps the gift pure.
縁起の良い布で包むことは、贈り物を清浄に保つと信じられてきました。
Furoshiki are not just a means of wrapping objects.
These cloths are used to express respect for others and to wish them good luck.
単に物を包むだけでなく、相手に敬意を示し、繁栄を願って使われる１枚の布。
The Japanese put a lot of thought and heart into gift giving, and furoshiki are clear evidence of that sensibility.
風呂敷には、日本人が贈り物に込めた細やかな心遣いが現れているのです。
(All from “Trad Japan” NHK publisher has copy right.)
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Wearing a kimono bearing a family crest makes the wearer look more formal.
紋付の着物を着ると、よりフォーマルに見えます。
communal bath 共同風呂
communal kitchen 共同キッチン
communal space 共有スペース
結び目をつくる tie a knot
結婚する tie the knot
An obijime goes around an obi sash and is tied at the front in a knot.
帯締めは帯の周りに巻いて、正面で結び目を作ります。
pure の名詞形はpurity, 「〜をpure にする」はpurify-
反対語はimpurity
In Buddhism, the world of the enlightened is called the jodo, or the Pure Land.
仏教では、悟りを開いたものの世界を浄土と言います。
Wasabi only grows in fresh, pure water.
わさびは清らかな真水の中でしか育ちません。
(All from “Trad Japan” NHK publisher has copy right.)
Akari Talks Japan 