Historical Kana Orthography - Examples

Examples

Here are some representative examples showing the historical and modern spellings and the kanji representation.

Historical usage Current usage Kanji Translation
けふ kefu きょう kyō 今日 today
てふ tefu ちょう chō 蝶 butterfly
ゐる wiru いる iru 居る there is/are (humans/animals)
あはれ ahare あわれ aware 哀れ sorrow; grief; pathos
かへる kaheru かえる kaeru 帰る to return home
くわし kuwashi (kwashi) かし kashi 菓子 sweets
とうきやう Toukiyau とうきょう Tōkyō 東京 Tokyo, the city of

The table at the bottom gives a more complete list of the changes in spelling patterns.

Read more about this topic:  Historical Kana Orthography

Famous quotes containing the word examples:

    “No rules exist, and examples are simply life-savers answering the appeals of rules making vain attempts to exist.”
    —André Breton (1896–1966)

    “Histories are more full of examples of the fidelity of dogs than of friends.”
    —Alexander Pope (1688–1744)

    “It is hardly to be believed how spiritual reflections when mixed with a little physics can hold people’s attention and give them a livelier idea of God than do the often ill-applied examples of his wrath.”
    —G.C. (Georg Christoph)