1.
Kamakura; the seaside temple town that was Japan's medieval capital
A coastal city in Kanagawa Prefecture that served as the seat of the shogunate from 1185 to 1333. Today it is a day-trip destination from Tokyo known for its Great Buddha, hillside temples, and surf beaches, and its name also labels the historical period.
Common expressions
- 鎌倉時代: the Kamakura period (1185–1333), standard school-history vocabulary
- 鎌倉幕府: the Kamakura shogunate
- 鎌倉の大仏: the Great Buddha of Kamakura
- 湘南: the surrounding coastal area Kamakura belongs to
Cultural note
For Japanese speakers 鎌倉 works on two levels at once: a history-class keyword for the first warrior government, and a present-day image of a relaxed, slightly upscale seaside town where writers and artists live. Note that the snow hut of northern Japan, also called かまくら, is unrelated and written in kana.