So Far from the Bamboo Grove Vocabulary

So Far from the Bamboo Grove Vocabulary

Kimono • a loose, wide-sleeved robe, fastened at the waist with a wide sash, characteristic of Japanese costume

Geta • a traditional Japanese wooden clog that is worn outdoors, with a thong that passes between the first two toes and with two transverse supports on the bottom of the sole

Miso • a fermented seasoning paste of soybeans, often with rice or barley added, used to flavor soups and sauces.

Koto • a Japanese musical instrument having numerous strings, usually seven or thirteen, that are stretched over a convex wooden sounding board and are plucked with three plectra, worn on the thumb, index finger, and middle finger of one hand.

Hibachi • a small Japanese-style charcoal brazier covered with a grill, usually used for outdoor cooking.

Shamisen • A Japanese musical instrument resembling a lute, having a very long neck and three strings played with a plectrum.

Mess Kit • a portable set of usually metal cooking and eating utensils, used esp. by soldiers and campers.

Calligraphy • a script, usually cursive, although sometimes angular, produced chiefly by brush, esp. Chinese, Japanese, or Arabic writing of high aesthetic value.

Canteen • a small container used esp. by soldiers and hikers for carrying water or other liquids.

Rucksack • backpack

th 38 Parallel • parallel of latitude that in East Asia roughly demarcates North and South Korea. The line was chosen by U. S. military planners at the Potsdam Conference, in July 1945, as an army boundary, north of which the U. S. S. R. was to accept the surrender of the Japanese forces in Korea and south of which the Americans were to accept the Japanese surrender.

Chemise • a woman's loosefitting, shirt-like undergarment.

Fusuma • a sliding door in a Japanese house, esp. one serving as a room partition.

Tatami • (in Japanese houses) any of a number of thick, woven straw mats of uniform dimensions, about three feet by six feet (91 cm by 183 cm), the placing of which determines the dimensions of an interior.

Kimchi • a Korean spicy pickled or fermented mixture containing cabbage, onions, and sometimes fish, variously seasoned, as with garlic, horseradish, red peppers, and ginger.

Broadax • an ax with a wide flat head and a short handle