鬼神

Chinese

		ghost; sly; crafty	God; unusual; mysterious God; unusual; mysterious; soul; spirit; divine essence; lively; spiritual being
trad. (鬼神)		鬼	神
simp. #(鬼神)		鬼	神
anagram		神鬼

Pronunciation

Rime
Character	鬼	神
Reading #	1/1	1/1
Initial (聲)	見 (28)	船 (27)
Final (韻)	微 (21)	眞 (43)
Tone (調)	Rising (X)	Level (Ø)
Openness (開合)	Closed	Open
Division (等)	III	III
Fanqie	居偉切	食鄰切
Baxter	kjw+jX	zyin
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/kʉiX/	/ʑiɪn/
Pan Wuyun	/kʷɨiX/	/ʑin/
Shao Rongfen	/kiuəiX/	/ʑjen/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/kujX/	/ʑin/
Li Rong	/kiuəiX/	/d͡ʑiĕn/
Wang Li	/kĭwəiX/	/d͡ʑĭĕn/
Bernard Karlgren	/kwe̯iX/	/d͡ʑʰi̯ĕn/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	guǐ	shén
Expected Cantonese Reflex	gwai2	san4

Baxter–Sagart system 1.1 (2014)
Character	鬼	神
Reading #	1/1	1/1
Modern Beijing (Pinyin)	guǐ	shén
Middle Chinese	‹ kjwɨjX ›	‹ zyin ›
Old Chinese	/*k-ʔujʔ/	/*Cə.li[n]/
English	ghost	spirit
Notes for Old Chinese notations in the Baxter–Sagart system: * Parentheses "()" indicate uncertain presence; * Square brackets "[]" indicate uncertain identity, e.g. *[t] as coda may in fact be *-t or *-p; * Angle brackets "<>" indicate infix; * Hyphen "-" indicates morpheme boundary; * Period "." indicates syllable boundary.

Zhengzhang system (2003)
Character	鬼	神
Reading #	1/1	1/1
No.	4689	11245
Phonetic component	鬼	申
Rime group	微	眞
Rime subdivision	2	1
Corresponding MC rime	鬼	神
Old Chinese	/*kulʔ/	/*hlin/

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): guǐshén

  (Zhuyin): ㄍㄨㄟˇ ㄕㄣˊ

• Cantonese

  (Guangzhou–Hong Kong, Jyutping): gwai² san⁴

  (Taishan, Wiktionary): gei² sin³

• Hakka

  (Sixian, PFS): kúi-sṳ̀n

  (Meixian, Guangdong): gui³ sen²

• Southern Min

  (Hokkien, POJ): kúi-sîn

  (Teochew, Peng'im): gui² sing⁵

---

• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: guǐshén
    • Zhuyin: ㄍㄨㄟˇ ㄕㄣˊ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: guěishén
    • Wade–Giles: kuei³-shên²
    • Yale: gwěi-shén
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: goeishern
    • Palladius: гуйшэнь (gujšɛnʹ)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ku̯eɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʂən³⁵/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: gwai² san⁴
    • Yale: gwái sàhn
    • Cantonese Pinyin: gwai² san⁴
    • Guangdong Romanization: guei² sen⁴
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /kʷɐi̯³⁵ sɐn²¹/
  • (Taishanese, Taicheng)
    • Wiktionary: gei² sin³
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /kei⁵⁵ sin²²/
• Hakka
  • (Sixian, incl. Miaoli and Neipu)
    • Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: kúi-sṳ̀n
    • Hakka Romanization System: gui^ˋ siin^ˇ
    • Hagfa Pinyim: gui³ sin²
    • Sinological IPA: /ku̯i³¹ sɨn¹¹/
  • (Meixian)
    • Guangdong: gui³ sen²
    • Sinological IPA: /kuɪ³¹ sən¹¹/
• Southern Min
  • (Hokkien: General Taiwanese)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: kúi-sîn
    • Tâi-lô: kuí-sîn
    • Phofsit Daibuun: kuysiin
    • IPA (Taipei): /kui⁵³⁻⁴⁴ sin²⁴/
    • IPA (Kaohsiung): /kui⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ sin²³/
  • (Teochew)
    • Peng'im: gui² sing⁵
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī-like: kúi sîng
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /kui⁵²⁻³⁵ siŋ⁵⁵/

---

• Middle Chinese: kjw+jX zyin

• Old Chinese

  (Baxter–Sagart): /*k-ʔujʔ  Cə.li[n]/

  (Zhengzhang): /*kulʔ  hlin/

Noun

鬼神

1. ghosts and spirits; supernatural beings

   迷信鬼神  ―  míxìn guǐshén  ―  to be superstitious about ghosts and spirits

   • 鬼神害盈而福謙，人道惡盈而好謙。 [Pre-Classical Chinese, trad.]
     鬼神害盈而福谦，人道恶盈而好谦。 [Pre-Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: I Ching, 11^th – 8^th century BCE

     Guǐshén hài yíng ér fú qiān, réndào wù yíng ér hào qiān. [Pinyin]

     (please add an English translation of this usage example)

   • 可憐夜半虛前席，不問蒼生問鬼神。 [Literary Chinese, trad.]
     可怜夜半虚前席，不问苍生问鬼神。 [Literary Chinese, simp.]

     From: 9th century, Li Shangyin, 賈生

     Kělián yèbàn xū qián xí, bù wèn cāngshēng wèn guǐshén. [Pinyin]

     Such a pity it is that the emperor left his seat empty at midnight, yet asking not about his people but about the supernatural.

Derived terms

• 動天地，感鬼神／动天地，感鬼神
• 動天地，泣鬼神／动天地，泣鬼神
• 天地鬼神
• 感天地，動鬼神／感天地，动鬼神
• 感天地，泣鬼神
• 敬鬼神而遠之／敬鬼神而远之
• 泣鬼神
• 驚天地，泣鬼神／惊天地，泣鬼神 (jīng tiāndì, qì guǐshén)
• 驚風雨，泣鬼神／惊风雨，泣鬼神
• 鬼神不測／鬼神不测
• 鬼神樣相／鬼神样相 (Hakka)
• 鬼神莫測／鬼神莫测
• 鬼神莫窺／鬼神莫窥

 

Descendants

Sino-Xenic (鬼神):

• → Japanese: 鬼(き)神(じん) (kijin); 鬼(き)神(しん) (kishin)
• → Korean: 귀신(鬼神) (gwisin)
• → Vietnamese: quỷ thần (鬼神)

Japanese

Etymology 1

Kanji in this term
鬼	神
き Grade: S	じん Grade: 3
goon

Alternative spelling
鬼神 (kyūjitai)

Kanji in this term
鬼	神
き Grade: S	しん Grade: 3
kan'on

Alternative spelling
鬼神 (kyūjitai)

From Middle Chinese 鬼神 (MC kjw+jX zyin, “devil, devilish + god, spirit”).

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) きじん [kìjíń] (Heiban – [0])^[1]
• (Tokyo) きじん [kíꜜjìǹ] (Atamadaka – [1])^[1]
• IPA^(key): [kʲiʑĩɴ]

• IPA^(key): [kʲiɕĩɴ]

Noun

鬼(き)神(じん) or 鬼(き)神(しん) • (kijin or kishin) 

1. a fierce god or spirit
2. all of the spirits and souls and gods of the world
3. (Buddhism) someone with superhuman power or ability, such as Śakra, the ruler of heaven, or a rakshasa or demon

Etymology 2

Kanji in this term
鬼	神
おに Grade: S	かみ > がみ Grade: 3
kun'yomi

Alternative spelling
鬼神 (kyūjitai)

Compound of 鬼 (oni, “devil, demon, malevolent spirit”) +‎ 神 (kami, “spirit, god”).^[2][1] The kami changes to gami as an instance of rendaku (連濁).

The term may have arisen as the native-Japanese reading of the Middle Chinese derived term kijin above.^[2] Found in the Kokin Wakashū, published in roughly 905 CE.

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) おにがみ [òníꜜgàmì] (Nakadaka – [2])^[1]
• (Tokyo) おにがみ [ònígámí] (Heiban – [0])^[1]
• IPA^(key): [o̞ɲ̟iɡa̠mʲi]

Noun

鬼(おに)神(がみ) • (onigami) 

1. an invisible spirit, particularly a fierce one

References

1. Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN
2. Shōgaku Tosho (1988) 国語大辞典（新装版） [Unabridged Dictionary of Japanese (Revised Edition)] (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan, →ISBN

Korean

Hanja in this term
鬼	神

Noun

鬼神 • (gwisin) (hangeul 귀신)

1. hanja form^? of 귀신 (“god, ghost, or spirit”)

Vietnamese

chữ Hán Nôm in this term
鬼	神

Noun

鬼神

1. chữ Hán form of quỷ thần (“god, ghost, or spirit”).