How to say fox in Japanese: 狐 (kitsune) and its nine tails
Fox in Japanese is 狐 (kitsune), 9 strokes. It's not just an animal: kitsune is considered a messenger of the deity Inari, can transform into a human, and grows a new tail every century — up to nine. Fox masks at festivals are called 狐面 (kitsunemen).
The Japanese fox serves the god of rice and lives at shrines: stone kitsune figures at the entrances to Inari shrines hold the key to the granary in their mouths. The nine-tailed fox is not an anime invention, but the highest level of this mythology: that many tails are grown over nine hundred years.
How to write 'fox' in Japanese
- Meaning
- fox, vixen
- Onyomi
- コ
- Kunyomi
- きつね
- strokes
- 9
9 strokes. Click 'Show order' — on the left is the animal radical 犭, on the right is 瓜.
The 'animal' radical and kana spelling
On the left is 犭 — the 'animal' radical, the same as in 猫 (cat) and 狼 (wolf). The kanji 狐 itself is not in the school curriculum, so in texts the word is more often written in kana: キツネ or きつね. In shrine names and old inscriptions, 狐 is used.
Fox words and mythology
| Japanese | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| 狐きつね | kitsune | Fox |
| 九尾の狐きゅうびのきつね | kyūbi no kitsune | Nine-tailed fox |
| 狐面きつねめん | kitsunemen | Fox mask |
| 稲荷いなり | Inari | Deity of rice, whose messenger is the fox |
| 狐の嫁入りきつねのよめいり | kitsune no yomeiri | Sunshowerliterally 'fox's wedding' — rain while the sun shines |
| きつねうどん | kitsune udon | Udon with fried tofufoxes, according to belief, love aburaage |
Why the fox is Inari's messenger
Inari is the deity of rice and prosperity, and foxes protected fields from rodents. From practical benefit grew mythology: at the entrances to Inari shrines stand stone kitsune, and throughout Japan there are more than thirty thousand such shrines — more than for any other deity.
Write 狐 yourself
FAQ
How do you say 'fox' in Japanese?
狐 (kitsune). It is more often written in kana — キツネ or きつね — because the kanji is not in the school curriculum.
Who is kitsune in mythology?
A fox spirit, messenger of the deity Inari. According to belief, with age it gains new tails — up to nine — and can take human form.
Where do the nine tails come from?
九尾の狐 (kyūbi no kitsune) — a fox that has lived about nine hundred years: it is believed that each century adds a tail, and the nine-tailed one gains almost divine power.
Why is udon with tofu called 'kitsune'?
Fried tofu aburaage is traditionally offered to Inari's foxes. The dish with such tofu got the name きつねうどん.
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