神隠(かみかく)し

かみかくし
noun
spiriting away, mysterious disappearance
religionculture
1. spiriting away, mysterious disappearance attributed to supernatural forces
A traditional Japanese belief that when a person — especially a child — vanished without explanation, they had been hidden away by gods, spirits, or tengu. In modern usage, refers to any sudden, inexplicable disappearance.
子(こ)どもが神隠(かみかく)しに遭(あ)った。
The child was spirited away.
昔(むかし)は行方不明(ゆくえふめい)になることを神隠(かみかく)しと呼(よ)んだ。
In the old days, disappearances were called kamikakushi.
村(むら)の少女(しょうじょ)がある日(ひ)突然(とつぜん)姿(すがた)を消(け)し、人々(ひとびと)は神隠(かみかく)しだと噂(うわさ)した。
A girl from the village suddenly vanished one day, and people whispered that she had been spirited away.

Usage

A word rooted in Japanese folklore. Historically, unexplained disappearances of people — particularly children — were attributed to gods (神(かみ)) or supernatural beings like 天狗(てんぐ) who would 隠(かく)す (hide) the person. The word became widely known internationally through the Studio Ghibli film 千(せん)と千尋(ちひろ)の神隠(かみかく)し (Spirited Away, 2001).

Common collocations

  • 神隠(かみかく)しに遭(あ)う: to be spirited away
  • 神隠(かみかく)しにあったように: as if spirited away
  • 千(せん)と千尋(ちひろ)の神隠(かみかく)し: Spirited Away (film title)
general
Added 2026.2.26 23:19 · Revised 2026.9.2 13:01
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