天守(てんしゅ)

てんしゅ
noun
castle tower; main keep of a Japanese castle
academicbuilding
1. castle tower; main keep; donjon
The tall, central tower of a Japanese castle, serving as the final defensive stronghold and the symbolic centerpiece of the fortification. Typically a multi-storied structure with distinctive curved rooflines, it was the most visually striking element of castle architecture during the Sengoku and Edo periods.
姫路城(ひめじじょう)の天守(てんしゅ)は美(うつく)しい。
The keep of Himeji Castle is beautiful.
天守(てんしゅ)の最上階(さいじょうかい)からは城下町(じょうかまち)が一望(いちぼう)できる。
You can see the entire castle town from the top floor of the keep.
この城(しろ)の天守(てんしゅ)は戦後(せんご)に鉄筋(てっきん)コンクリートで再建(さいけん)されたものだ。
This castle's keep was rebuilt with reinforced concrete after the war.

Also written as 天守閣(てんしゅかく), which adds the suffix 閣(かく) ('tower; pavilion'). Both forms refer to the same structure, though 天守閣(てんしゅかく) is the more common form in everyday conversation and tourist contexts.

Etymology

  • Castle keeps emerged during the late Muromachi and Sengoku periods (16th century) as military architecture evolved
  • 織田(おだ)信長(のぶなが)'s 安土城(あづちじょう) (1579) is considered the first grand-scale 天守(てんしゅ)
  • Only twelve original 天守(てんしゅ) survive today; many others are reconstructions

Common collocations

Similar words

  • 城(しろ): castle — the general word for a castle as a whole, including walls, moats, and grounds
  • 櫓(やぐら): turret; watchtower — smaller defensive towers positioned at corners or along castle walls
  • 本丸(ほんまる): main bailey — the innermost fortified area of a castle where the keep stands

Related Words

Compare: 城(しろ) (castle)
Compare: 櫓(やぐら) (turret)
Compare: 本丸(ほんまる) (main bailey)
general
Added 2026.4.18 20:19 · Revised 2026.9.2 13:02
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