Kotodama
/ko̞to̞dama/noun
A Japanese concept that words, names, or utterances possess spiritual power capable of influencing reality.
Did you know?The 8th-century Man’yōshū describes Japan as a land where kotodama brings blessings, linking spoken language with national and spiritual power.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Japonic
Proto-Japonic
*koto
“Speech, utterance, matter, or affair; the word’s meanings may have overlapped conceptually.”
Proto-Japonic
Proto-Japonic
*tama
“Spirit, soul, jewel, or sacred essence.”
8th Century
Old Japanese
言霊 (kotodama)
“The spiritual or mystical power associated with words and utterances.”
8th Century
Old Japanese
言霊の幸ふ国 (kotodama no sakiwau kuni)
“A land where the spirit of words brings blessings, in a famous Man’yōshū expression.”
19th–20th Century
Japanese
ことだま (kotodama)
“A revived cultural and spiritual concept associated with the efficacy of words, names, and language.”
Modern English
English
kotodama
“A Japanese belief or concept that words possess spiritual power and can affect reality.”