文人(ぶんじん)

ぶんじん
noun
man of letters; literary person
formalpersonculturehistory
1. man of letters; literatus
A person devoted to literature and the arts, in the tradition of the scholar-poet who also painted and practiced calligraphy. Mostly used about the past.
明治(めいじ)の文人(ぶんじん)。
A man of letters of the Meiji era.
この温泉(おんせん)宿(やど)には多(おお)くの文人(ぶんじん)が泊(と)まった。
Many literary figures stayed at this hot-spring inn.
江戸(えど)時代(じだい)の文人(ぶんじん)たちは、詩(し)を作(つく)るだけでなく、絵(え)や書(しょ)も楽(たの)しんだ。
Edo-period literati not only wrote poetry but also enjoyed painting and calligraphy.

Common collocations

  • 文人(ぶんじん)画(が): literati painting (a style of painting by scholar-amateurs)
  • 文人(ぶんじん)墨客(ぼっかく): poets and painters, men of letters and art (a set phrase)
  • 明治(めいじ)の文人(ぶんじん): Meiji-era literary figures

Similar words

  • 作家(さっか): writer, novelist (a profession, the modern everyday word)
  • 文学者(ぶんがくしゃ): literary figure; also a scholar of literature
  • 武人(ぶじん): military man (the traditional opposite)

Related Words

Compare: 作家(さっか) (writer, novelist)
general
Added 2026.10.12 10:58 · Revised 2026.10.12 10:59
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