# 伽羅
## Chinese
### Etymology

There are two leading theories:
* From the first two syllables of 伽羅阿伽嚧 (MC gja la 'a gja lu), a phonetic rendering of Sanskrit कालागुरु (kālāguru), referring to a kind of fragrant black (काल (kāla)) agarwood (अगुरु (aguru)) used for incense.
* From the last two syllables of 多伽羅 (MC ta gja la), from Sanskrit तगर (tagara), referring to Tabernaemontana coronaria (pinwheel flower or crepe jasmine) or a fragrant powder made from the plant.

### Pronunciation

* Mandarin
    (Pinyin): qiéluó, jiāluó
    (Zhuyin): ㄑㄧㄝˊ ㄌㄨㄛˊ, ㄐㄧㄚ ㄌㄨㄛˊ
* Mandarin
** (Standard Chinese)
*** Hanyu Pinyin: qiéluó
*** Zhuyin: ㄑㄧㄝˊ ㄌㄨㄛˊ
*** Tongyong Pinyin: ciéluó
*** Wade–Giles: chʻieh$^2$-lo$^2$
*** Yale: chyé-lwó
*** Gwoyeu Romatzyh: chyeluo
*** Palladius: цело (celo)
*** Sinological IPA : /t͡ɕʰi̯ɛ³⁵ lu̯ɔ³⁵/
** (Standard Chinese)
*** Hanyu Pinyin: jiāluó
*** Zhuyin: ㄐㄧㄚ ㄌㄨㄛˊ
*** Tongyong Pinyin: jialuó
*** Wade–Giles: chia$^1$-lo$^2$
*** Yale: jyā-lwó
*** Gwoyeu Romatzyh: jialuo
*** Palladius: цзяло (czjalo)
*** Sinological IPA : /t͡ɕi̯ä⁵⁵ lu̯ɔ³⁵/

### Noun

伽羅
* (historical) a form of high-grade agarwood
    Synonyms: 奇楠 (qínán), 沉香 (chénxiāng)

### References

* 1 2 Shōgaku Tosho (1988) 国語大辞典（新装版） [Unabridged Dictionary of Japanese (Revised Edition)] (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan, →ISBN
* 1 2 Matsumura, Akira (1995) 大辞泉 [Daijisen] (in Japanese), First edition, Tokyo: Shogakukan, →ISBN
* ↑ Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN

## Japanese
### Etymology 1

Kanji in this term :
| 伽 | 羅 |
| か Jinmeiyō | ら Grade: S |
| kan'yōon | on'yomi |
* Alternative spellings
* 加羅 迦羅
From Gaya [script needed] (kara).

#### Pronunciation

* (Tokyo) から [kàrá] (Heiban – [0])
* IPA: [ka̠ɾa̠]

#### Proper noun

伽(か)羅(ら) • (Kara)
* (historical) the Gaya confederacy: a grouping of smaller states on the southern end of the Korean peninsula, roughly dating to 42-532 CE
    Synonyms: 伽耶 (Kaya), 任那 (Mimana)

##### Coordinate terms

* 百済(くだら) (Kudara, “Baekje”)
* 高句麗(こうくり) (Kōkuri, “Goguryeo”)
* 新羅(しらぎ) (Shiragi, “Silla”)

##### Derived terms

* 韓(から) (Kara, “Korea”), by extension of the Gaya confederacy to the entire Korean peninsula
** 漢(から) (Kara, “(Han dynasty) China”), by extension of the Korean peninsula further to the Chinese mainland
** 唐(から) (Kara, “(Tang dynasty) China”)
*** 唐(から) (kara, “foreign lands”, in general), by extension of "China"

### Etymology 2

Kanji in this term :
| 伽 | 羅 |
| きゃ Jinmeiyō | ら Grade: S |
| goon ||
There are two leading theories, both deriving from Middle Chinese 伽羅 (MC gja la):
* From the first two syllables of 伽羅阿伽嚧 (MC gja la 'a gja lu), a phonetic rendering of Sanskrit कालागुरु (kālāguru), referring to a kind of fragrant black (kāla) agarwood tree (aguru) used for incense.
* From the last two syllables of 多伽羅 (MC ta gja la), a phonetic rendering of Sanskrit तगर (tagara), referring to Tabernaemontana coronaria (pinwheel flower or crepe jasmine) or a fragrant powder made from the plant.

#### Pronunciation

* (Tokyo) きゃら [kyáꜜrà] (Atamadaka – [1])
* (Tokyo) きゃら [kyàrá] (Heiban – [0])
* IPA: [kʲa̠ɾa̠]

#### Noun

伽(きゃ)羅(ら) • (kyara)
* Short for 伽羅木 (kyaraboku): a Japanese yew variety, Taxus cuspidata var. nana
* an aromatic tree
* incense, especially when made from such aromatic wood
* (by extension) something of high quality, a rarity, a luxury
* (historical slang, obsolete) during the Edo period, a red-light district slang word for "money"
* flattery, sycophancy

##### Derived terms

* 伽羅(きゃら)色(いろ) (kyarairo, “dark reddish brown color”)
* 伽羅(きゃら)柿(がき) (kyaragaki): a variety of persimmon noted for its darker skin and sweeter taste
* 伽羅(きゃら)臭(くさ)い (kyarakusai, “ostentatious, showy, overdone”)
* 伽羅(きゃら)細(ざい)工(く) (kyara zaiku): fine woodwork created using aromatic woods
* 伽羅(きゃら)代(だい) (kyara dai): in the Edo period, a red-light district slang term for money, especially the fee paid to an entertainer or prostitute
* 伽羅(きゃら)の油(あぶら) (kyara no abura): a kind of pomade or hair oil made from sesame oil, plant resins, and cloves
* 伽羅(きゃら)の御(おん)方(かた) (kyara no onkata, “one's legal wife”)
* 伽羅(きゃら)の木(き) (kyara no ki, “Japanese yew”)
* 伽羅(きゃら)の字(じ) (kyara no ji): in the Edo period, a red-light district slang term for money, especially the fee paid to an entertainer or prostitute
* 伽羅(きゃら)の枕(まくら) (kyara no makura): a wooden headrest with a drawer for burning incense
* 伽羅(きゃら)冷(ひやし) (kyara hiyashi): a kind of tin urn or tin-plated box, partially filled with water, over which agarwood incense is placed; used in summer
* 伽羅(きゃら)蕗(ぶき) (kyarabuki): butterbur stems simmered in soy sauce until dark reddish brown
* 伽羅(きゃら)木(ぼく) (kyaraboku, “Japanese yew”)
* 伽羅(きゃら)枕(まくら) (kyara makura): a wooden headrest with a drawer for burning incense
* 伽羅(きゃら)女(め) (kyarame, “beautiful woman”, slang)
* 伽羅(きゃら)者(もの) (kyaramono): a flatterer; an amiable or sociable person who is quick to compliment others

##### Idioms

* 伽羅(きゃら)で作(つく)った仏(ほとけ)同然(どうぜん) (kyara de tsukutta hotoke dōzen): “just like a Buddha statue made from agarwood” → agarwood only smells nice when burned, so making a statue out of agarwood is pointless: something or someone of high value, but that turns out to be useless
* 伽羅(きゃら)を言(い)う (kyara o iu): “to speak incense” → to flatter, to say nice things to flatter or ingratiate someone
* 伽羅(きゃら)の仏(ほとけ)に箔(はく)置(お)く (kyara no hotoke ni haku oku): “to put gold foil on an agarwood Buddha” → “to put the icing on the cake”: adding something good on top of something that is already good
* 伽羅(きゃら)も焚(た)かず屁(へ)もこかず (kyara mo takazu he mo kokazu): “not even burning incense, not even passing gas” → neither here nor there, neither good nor bad

##### Coordinate terms

* 木(き)所(どころ) (kidokoro): 伽羅(きゃら) (kyara), 羅(ら)国(こく) (rakoku), 真南蛮(まなばん) (manaban), 真那伽(まなか) (manaka), 佐曽羅(さそら) (sasora), 寸門多羅(すもたら) (sumotara)

### References

* ↑ Christopher I. Beckwith (2009) Empires of the Silk Road: A History of Central Eurasia from the Bronze Age to the Present, Princeton University Press, →ISBN, page 105: “The spelling Kaya is the modern Korean reading of the characters used to write the name; the pronunciation /kara/ (transcriptionally *kala) is certain.”
* 1 2 3 Shōgaku Tosho (1988) 国語大辞典（新装版） [Unabridged Dictionary of Japanese (Revised Edition)] (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan, →ISBN
* 1 2 3 4 Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN
* 1 2 Matsumura, Akira (1995) 大辞泉 [Daijisen] (in Japanese), First edition, Tokyo: Shogakukan, →ISBN