🌏 Region(s): Ryukyu (Okinawa)
てぃんみー【天命】 : tinmii | define meaning
tinmii
Pronunciation: [tim̩miː]
Definition
Noun
- Heaven's decree; mandate of heaven; divine will; god's will; fate; destiny
Etymology
Cognate with standard Japanese てんめい【天命】 tenmei "heaven's decree, fate". Ultimately from Chinese 【天命】 "divine will, heavenly mandate, fate, destiny" (cf. Mandarin tiānmìng; Cantonese tin1 ming6; Hakka thiên-min; Hokkien thian-bēng; Sino-Korean 천명 cheonmyeong; and Sino-Vietnamese thiên mệnh), reconstructed for Middle Chinese as *then mjaengH.
Historical Ryukyuan attestations
- 沖縄語典 Okinawa goten (Okinawan language dictionary) (1896), by Masayo Nakamoto, records "「てィんみい」天命（テンメイ）".
Spelling
| Orthography | Form |
|---|---|
| Kanji | 天命 |
| Kana | てぃんみー |
| New Okinawa Moji | 廒んみー |
| Romanization | tinmii |
| Pronunciation (IPA) | [tim̩miː] |
意味：てんめい【天命】
天命
Cite this entry: Read, Zachary. (2025, June 2). てぃんみー【天命】 : tinmii | define meaning. JLect: Japonic Languages and Dialects Database. Retrieved 2025, June 29, from https://www.jlect.com/entry/7157/tinmii/.