1.
male homosexuality; male-male love
A historical and literary term for romantic and sexual relationships between men. Widely documented in Japanese history, particularly among samurai, Buddhist monks, and the aristocracy from the Heian period through the Edo period.
男色は日本の歴史で広く見られた。
Male homosexuality was widely observed in Japanese history.
井原西鶴は男色を題材にした作品を書いた。
Ihara Saikaku wrote works on the theme of male love.
武士社会における男色の文化は衆道とも呼ばれた。
The culture of male love in samurai society was also called shudō.
Composed of 男 (male) and 色 (sensuality, love). 色 in classical Japanese often refers to romantic or sexual love. This is primarily a historical and literary term found in academic texts and classical literature. The most famous literary work on this topic is 井原西鶴's 男色大鑑 (The Great Mirror of Male Love, 1687).
In samurai culture, this practice was formalized as 衆道 (the way of youths), a mentoring relationship between an older and younger samurai.
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- 男色の文化: culture of male love
- 男色大鑑: The Great Mirror of Male Love (literary work)
- 男色を好む: to have a taste for male love
SIMILAR WORDS:
- 衆道: the way of youths — formalized male-male relationships in samurai culture
- 同性愛: homosexuality — the modern, neutral term
- 難色: reluctance, disapproval — a homophone with completely different meaning and kanji