How to say 'Archipelago' in Japanese | 諸島

Wondering how to say 'Archipelago' in Japanese? You're in the right place!

The Japanese word for Archipelago is 'Shotou', written as 諸島 in Japanese.'Archipelago' in hiragana is しょとう.

word

諸島

Meaning

Archipelago

Reading

しょとう

shotou

Kanji

諸Many, Various 島Island

Explanation

The Japanese noun '諸島 (しょとう)' refers to an 'archipelago', which is a group or chain of islands. This term is often used in geographical contexts to describe clusters of islands, such as the Japanese archipelago itself. For example: The Japanese archipelago consists of many islands「日本の諸島は多くの島々から成る」(にほんのしょとうはおおくのしまじまからなる). The Ryukyu Islands are a famous archipelago「琉球諸島は有名な諸島です」(りゅうきゅうしょとうはゆうめいなしょとうです). The term can also be used metaphorically to describe any group or collection of similar things, though this usage is less common.

Part Of Speech

noun

Kanji JLPT

Kanji Grade

Frequency

7114

Composition

kanji

Handwriting

Kanji in the Word 諸島

This word contains 2 kanji characters:

kanji

諸

Meaning

Many, Various

kanji

島

Meaning

Island

Words Related to 諸島 Through the Kanji 諸

These 2 Words contain the Kanji 諸 as well.

word

諸

Meaning

Various

word

諸国

Meaning

Countries

Words Related to 諸島 Through the Kanji 島

These 3 Words contain the Kanji 島 as well.

word

島

Meaning

Island

word

半島

Meaning

Peninsula

word

列島

Meaning

Archipelago

Learn the Word 諸島

Let's make sure you fully understand this word.

What does 'Shotou' (諸島) mean?

'Shotou' means 'Archipelago' .

To help you master this word, here's an interactive lesson where you'll practice its readings and meanings.