Japanese word

故郷

Pronunciation

Romajikokyō

Meaning

  • nounhometown

Example

私の故郷は北海道です。watashi no ko kyō wa hok kai dō de su

My hometown is Hokkaido.

Illustration for 故郷 (hometown)

More examples

母から故郷の祭りについて聞きました。haha ka ra ko kyō no matsu ri ni tsu i te ki ki ma shi ta

I heard about the festival in my hometown from my mother.

Core concept

Refers to the place where someone was born and raised or where they lived for a long time.

Common phrases

  • 故郷に帰るko kyō ni kae ru

    go back to one's hometown

  • 故郷に戻るko kyō ni modo ru

    return to one's hometown

  • 故郷を離れるko kyō o hana re ru

    leave one's hometown

  • 故郷を懐かしむko kyō o natsu ka shi mu

    miss one's hometown

  • 故郷の友人ko kyō no yū jin

    a friend from one's hometown

Similar words

出身地shusshinchi: The place where a person was born or grew up and is considered their place of origin.
郷里kyōri: The place where a person was born and raised, expressed in a formal or literary way.

Definition in Japanese

生まれ育った土地や、長く暮らしてきた土地。u ma re soda tta to chi ya naga ku ku ra shi te ki ta to chi

Word origin

故郷 (kokyō, "hometown") combines 故 (ko, "former") and 郷 (kyō, "village or hometown"), giving the sense of a former home.

Usage tips

  • 故郷 (kokyō) often appears in conversations about returning home, especially when people describe moving away from the place where they grew up.

Other meanings

  • birthplacenoun
  • old homenoun

Word lists with this word