南

South

Stroke count: 9

Readings

On readingナン、ナ

Kun readingみなみ

JLPT level: N5 Jōyō Grade 2Level 7

Meanings

southRtK

Radicals and components

Radical十ten

Components

How it's built

南

Mnemonic (RtK)

ⓘ

ten (十) · needle (丨) · belt · happiness · ten (十) · needle (丨) · stand up (立) · vase

From "Remembering the Kanji" by James Heisig · Frame 1740

Compound words

東西南北とうざいなんぼく

east, west, south and north

South Pole; the Antarctic; Antarctica

南口みなみぐち

south entrance; south exit

南蛮なんばん

southern barbarians (name used in ancient China for non-Chinese ethnic groups to the south); South-East Asian countries (in the late-Muromachi and Edo periods); Western Europe (esp. Spain and Portugal and their South-East Asian colonies; late-Muromachi and Edo periods); foreign (of goods from South-East Asia and Western Europe); exotic (esp. in a Western European or South-East Asian style)

南部なんぶ

southern part; the south (of a region)

南米なんべい

South America

南方なんぽう

the south; southward; southern direction; countries in the south (esp. Southeast Asia and the pre-WWII South Pacific Mandate)

南北なんぼく

north and south; north to south; South Korea and North Korea

南瓜かぼちゃ

pumpkin (Cucurbita sp.); squash

Central and South America

Annam (old name for Vietnam)

Kun Reading Examples

南のほうから雲が出てきている。みなみ

The clouds are coming from the south.tatoeba

南ターミナルはどこですか。みなみ

Where is the south terminal?tatoeba

南アメリカのほとんどの国ではスペイン語を話す。みなみ

Spanish is spoken in most countries of South America.tatoeba

Additional Examples

彼は南北戦争の歴史書を書いた。

He wrote a book about the American Civil War.tatoeba

彼は南部出身に違いない。

He must be from the South.tatoeba

彼は南極周辺の地域を探検した。

He explored the region around the South Pole.tatoeba

彼は市の南部に住んでいます。

He lives in the southern part of the city.tatoeba

Stroke Order

9 strokes

South. A warm place where things grow — the south.

Practice Writing

Practice Writing 南

Draw with a guide, then from memory — checked at every step