1.
to leave one's hometown; to leave the place where one grew up
Describes the significant life event of departing from one's birthplace or childhood home, usually to live elsewhere. Carries an emotional weight suggesting the difficulty of leaving behind familiar surroundings and connections.
十八歳で故郷を離れた。
I left my hometown at age eighteen.
大学進学のために故郷を離れる若者が多い。
Many young people leave their hometowns to attend university.
故郷を離れてもう二十年になるが、時々懐かしくなる。
It's been twenty years since I left my hometown, but I sometimes feel nostalgic.
故郷 can also be read as ふるさと, which has a warmer, more nostalgic tone. The expression carries emotional significance in Japanese culture, where hometown connections (地元) remain important throughout life. Leaving one's hometown is a common theme in literature, songs, and coming-of-age narratives.
In Japan, many young people leave rural hometowns for cities like Tokyo or Osaka for education or work, making this expression relevant to discussions of rural depopulation (過疎化) and urban migration.
COMMON PATTERNS:
- 故郷を離れて〜年: ~ years since leaving one's hometown
- 故郷を離れて暮らす: to live away from one's hometown
SIMILAR EXPRESSIONS:
- 地元を出る: to leave one's local area — more casual and less emotional
- 実家を出る: to leave one's parents' home — focuses on the physical household, not the region
- 田舎を出る: to leave the countryside — specifies rural origin