黒曜石
kokuyōseki[ko̞kɯ̟jo̞ːse̞kʲi]
The Japanese word for obsidian is 黒曜石, which is pronounced kokuyōseki.
黒曜石 refers to the type of black glass produced by volcanoes.
Meaning: a type of black glass produced by volcanoes (noun)
What does it mean word for word?
The word is composed of the characters for 'black' (黒), 'shining/bright' (曜) and 'stone' (石), literally meaning 'black shining stone'.
How do you pronounce it?
kokuyōseki
Did you know?
- The character 曜 in 黒曜石 is the same one used to name the days of the week in Japanese, such as 月曜日 for 'Monday'.
- While 黒曜石 is the technical term, Japanese people often use the loanword オブシディアン in modern fantasy literature or gaming contexts to sound more exotic.
- Archaeologists use the presence of 黒曜石 tools to map prehistoric trade routes, as the stone's chemical signature points back to specific volcanic sites like those in Kyushu.
Examples in context
- 黒曜石は美しい装飾品に使われます。Obsidian is used in beautiful ornaments.
- 黒曜石はとても鋭い。Kokuyōseki wa totemo surai.Obsidian is very sharp.
- 彼は黒曜石のアクセサリーを付けている。Kare wa kokuyōseki no akusesarī o tsukete iru.He is wearing obsidian accessories.
- この黒曜石は火山でできた。Kono kokuyōseki wa kazan de dekita.This obsidian was formed in a volcano.
Example conversation
A museum visit between two siblings.
- 陽葵 Himari陽太、あの黒曜石を見て！Yōta, ano kokuyōseki o mite!Yōta, look at that obsidian!
- 陽太 Yota本当だ、すごく綺麗だね。Hontō da, sugoku kirei da ne.You're right, it's really beautiful.
- 陽葵 Himari黒曜石の輝きがすごいよ。Kokuyōseki no kagayaki ga sugoi yo.The shine of the obsidian is amazing.
- 陽太 Yota陽葵、もっと近くで見よう。Himari, motto chikaku de miyō.Himari, let's look closer.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “obsidian” translations and entries 黒曜石, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
