我(わ)が国(くに)

わがくに
noun
our country
formalwritten
1. our country, our nation
A formal expression meaning 'our country,' used in official speeches, government documents, academic writing, and news reporting to refer to Japan (or the speaker's own country). More formal than 日本(にほん).
Our country's economy is on a recovery trend.
我(わ)が国(くに)では少子高齢化(しょうしこうれいか)が深刻(しんこく)な問題(もんだい)となっている。
In our country, the declining birthrate and aging population have become a serious problem.
Our country's food self-sufficiency rate is at a particularly low level even among developed nations.

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A formal, written expression. Used in government white papers, academic papers, news commentary, and official speeches. Not used in casual conversation, where 日本(にほん) or うち would be used instead.

Common patterns

我(わ)が is an archaic possessive form meaning "my" or "our." It survives in set expressions like 我(わ)が国(くに), 我(わ)が家(いえ)/我(わ)が家(や) (my home), and 我(わ)が社(しゃ) (our company). In modern Japanese, 我(わ)が is not productive — it only appears in established compounds.

Common collocations