1.
landscape; scenery of mountains and water
The natural scenery formed by mountains and rivers. An aesthetic concept central to East Asian art and garden design.
美しい山水の風景。
Beautiful mountain and water scenery.
この庭園は山水をかたどった枯山水だ。
This garden is a dry landscape that represents mountain and water scenery.
日本の山水は四季ごとに表情を変える。
Japan's natural landscape changes its appearance with each season.
2.
landscape painting; sansui painting
A genre of East Asian painting depicting mountains, rivers, and natural landscapes. Abbreviated from 山水画.
水墨の山水を描く。
To paint a landscape in ink wash.
雪舟は山水画の名手として知られる。
Sesshu is known as a master of landscape painting.
中国から伝わった山水画は、日本で独自の発展を遂げた。
Landscape painting, which came from China, developed in its own unique way in Japan.
Composed of 山 (mountain) + 水 (water). A foundational concept in East Asian aesthetics representing the ideal natural landscape. The word evokes both actual scenery and artistic depictions of it.
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- 山水画: landscape painting (the full term)
- 枯山水: dry landscape garden — a rock garden that symbolizes mountains and water without using actual water
- 山水の風景: mountain-and-water scenery
- 水墨山水: ink-wash landscape
CULTURAL CONTEXT:
枯山水 (dry landscape) gardens, found at Zen temples like 龍安寺, use rocks, gravel, and moss to abstractly represent 山水 without water. This is one of the most iconic forms of Japanese garden design.
SIMILAR WORDS:
- 風景: scenery, landscape — general term for any view or scenery, without the cultural/artistic nuance
- 景色: scenery, view — everyday word for what you see when looking at nature
- 山河: mountains and rivers — more literary; emphasizes the physical geography of a land