Shochu
/ˈʃoʊ.tʃuː/noun
A Japanese distilled alcoholic spirit commonly made from barley, sweet potatoes, rice, or other starches.
Did you know?The character 酎 originally referred to a strong, carefully matured alcoholic drink in Classical Chinese, while 焼 evokes heating or burning—though the modern drink is made by distillation, not literally burning.
Etymological Timeline
Classical Chinese
Chinese
酎
“A strong or specially prepared alcoholic drink; the character later became associated with potent liquor.”
Medieval Chinese
Chinese
焼酒
“Distilled liquor, literally “burned liquor”; this terminology is closely related to the Japanese name.”
15th–16th Century
Japanese
焼酎
“A distilled alcoholic beverage; the term appears in historical Japanese records during the period when distillation spread through East Asian trade networks.”
16th Century
Japanese
shōchū
“The Sino-Japanese reading of 焼酎, used for distilled spirits produced in Japan and the Ryukyu region.”
Modern English
English
shochu
“An English loanword for Japanese distilled spirits, commonly transliterated from Japanese shōchū.”