Vol. 09 · Loanwords ·Japanese ·1610s
Shogun
from 将軍 (shōgun)
- Meaning
- The hereditary military governor of Japan (1185–1868).
- Source word
- 将軍 (shōgun)
- Route into English
- Japanese *shōgun* ("general," from Chinese *jiāngjūn*) → English via 17th-century reports by European traders → popularised in the West by James Clavell's 1975 novel and its televised adaptation.
- Arrived
- 1610s
From Japanese
Two waves — Meiji-era diplomatic contact (1850s–1900s) and post-war US military presence (1945–) account for almost all Japanese loans in general English.
English borrows.
Browse the full loanword atlas or explore another source language.