# 中国
## Chinese

* For pronunciation and definitions of 中国 – see 中國 (“middle country; central country; China; etc.”). (This term is the simplified form of 中國).
* Notes:Simplified Chinese is mainly used in Mainland China, Malaysia, and Singapore.Traditional Chinese is mainly used in Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan.

## Japanese
### Etymology 1

Kanji in this term :
| 中 | 国 |
| ちゅう Grade: 1 | こく > ごく Grade: 2 |
| on'yomi ||
* Alternative spelling
* 中國 (kyūjitai)
From Middle Chinese 中國 (MC trjuwng kwok, literally “central country”). Compare modern Cantonese 中國／中国 (zung$^1$ gwok$^3$). Attested from at least the 12th century.
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium. Particularly: “Where the "China" sense first attested in a Japanese document?”)

#### Proper noun

中(ちゅう)国(ごく) • (Chūgoku)
* China
** (historical or contemporary) any of several kingdoms, empires, or states of the Chinese people
    Hyponyms: 殷 (In), 周 (Shū), 秦 (Shin), 漢 (Kan), 唐 (Tō), 中華民国 (Chūka Minkoku)
*** c. 1120, Konjaku monogatari shū [Tales of Times Now Past], scroll 6:
    造(つく)り奉(まつ)れる体(すがた)を見(み)るに、中(ちゅう)國(ごく)には不(ふ)似(に)ず、面(めん)[めう]胡(こ)国(こく)に似(に)たり。
       Tsukuri matsureru sugata o miru ni, Chūgoku ni wa fu-nizu, men[meu] kokoku ni nitari.
       Judging from the appearance [of the statue], it is not unlike those in China, though the face resembles the northern nations.
** (especially in contemporary usage) short for 中華人民共和国 (Chūka Jinmin Kyōwakoku), the People's Republic of China
*** 1998 November 30 [1990 November 25], Fujiko F. Fujio, のび太(た)とアニマル惑星(プラネット) [Nobita and the Animal Planet] (大長編ドラえもん; 10), 22nd edition, volume 10 (fiction), Tokyo: Shogakukan, →ISBN, page 27:
    クニ？クニってなあに。アメリカとか中(ちゅう)国(ごく)とかいろいろあるじゃない。
       Kuni? Kuni tte nāni.
       Country? What’s a country?
       Amerika toka Chūgoku toka iroiro aru ja nai.
       You know, countries. There are a bunch of them like America and China.

##### Derived terms

* 中(ちゅう)国(ごく)語(ご) (Chūgoku-go, “Chinese language”)
* 中(ちゅう)国(ごく)人(じん) (Chūgoku-jin, “Chinese person/people”)
* 中(ちゅう)国(ごく)料(りょう)理(り) (Chūgoku ryōri, “Chinese cuisine”)

##### Related terms

* 中(ちゅう)華(か) (Chūka)
* 支(し)那(な) (Shina) (used before World War II, now offensive)

### Etymology 2

Kanji in this term :
| 中 | 国 |
| ちゅう Grade: 1 | こく > ごく Grade: 2 |
| on'yomi ||
* Alternative spelling
* 中國 (kyūjitai)
From Middle Chinese 中國 (MC trjuwng kwok). (Can this etymology be sourced?)
Analyzable as a compound of 中 (chū, “center, middle”) +‎ 国 (koku, “province”). The koku changes to goku as an instance of rendaku (連濁).

#### Pronunciation

* (Tokyo) ちゅうごく [chúꜜùgòkù] (Atamadaka – [1])
* (Tokyo) ちゅうごく [chùúgókú] (Heiban – [0])
* IPA: [t͡ɕɨːɡo̞kɯ̟]
* Audio:(file)

#### Noun

中(ちゅう)国(ごく) • (chūgoku)
* the central part of a country, historically, commonly known as the capital city or the main region, where an emperor or other ruler resides
* something within a country
* (historical) under the 律令 (Ritsuryō) system, a province of the third rank according to a four-rank system based on population and area
* (historical) under the 律令 (Ritsuryō) system, a province of the second rank according to the distance from the capital city
* collective term for the 山陽道 (San'yōdō) and 山陰道 (San'indō) regions of Japan

##### Derived terms

* 中(ちゅう)国(ごく)地(ち)方(ほう) (Chūgoku chihō)

#### Proper noun

中(ちゅう)国(ごく) • (Chūgoku)
* Short for 中国地方 (Chūgoku chihō): the Chūgoku region of Japan

### Etymology 3

Kanji in this term :
| 中 | 国 |
| なか Grade: 1 | くに Grade: 2 |
| kun'yomi ||
* Alternative spelling
* 中國 (kyūjitai)
From 中 (naka, “center, middle”) +‎ 国 (kuni, “country”).

#### Proper noun

中(なか)国(くに) • (Nakakuni)
* a surname

### See also

* 中(なか)つ国(くに) (naka tsu kuni)

### References

* ↑ Shōgaku Tosho (1988) 国語大辞典（新装版） [Unabridged Dictionary of Japanese (Revised Edition)] (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan, →ISBN
* ↑ Kindaichi, Kyōsuke et al., editors (1997), 新明解国語辞典 [Shin Meikai Kokugo Jiten] (in Japanese), Fifth edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN
* ↑ Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN

## Zhuang
### Proper noun

中国
* Sawndip form of Cunghgoz