1.
pheasant; specifically the green pheasant (Phasianus versicolor), Japan's national bird
A medium-sized ground bird native to Japan. The male has brilliant iridescent green and copper plumage. Designated as Japan's national bird in 1947.
雉は日本の国鳥だ。
The pheasant is Japan's national bird.
雄の雉は色鮮やかな羽を持っている。
Male pheasants have brilliantly colored feathers.
桃太郎は犬、猿、雉を家来にして鬼を退治した。
Momotaro defeated the demons with his retainers — a dog, a monkey, and a pheasant.
The 雉 (green pheasant) is endemic to Japan and was designated as the national bird in 1947. It is deeply embedded in Japanese culture and appears in many folk tales, proverbs, and idioms.
CULTURAL CONTEXT:
The pheasant is one of 桃太郎's three animal companions, along with the dog and monkey. This folk tale is known to virtually all Japanese people, making 雉 a culturally significant word.
PROVERBS AND IDIOMS:
- 雉も鳴かずば撃たれまい: If the pheasant hadn't cried out, it wouldn't have been shot — keeping silent avoids trouble
- 頭隠して尻隠さず: hiding one's head but not one's tail — based on the pheasant's behavior of hiding its head in grass
SIMILAR WORDS:
- 国鳥: national bird — the category; Japan's is the 雉
- 鶏: chicken — a domesticated bird in the same family (Phasianidae)
- 鳩: pigeon/dove — another commonly seen bird in Japan