真鰯 (Ma-iwashi)

Sardine

  • まいわし
  • Ma-iwashi
  • Pitch 2

Meaning

真鰯 (まいわし, Ma-iwashi) is Sardine — a Japanese food.

What is Sardine?

Iwashi means "sardine", and the term covers a range of species. "真鰯" refers to Sardinops melanostictus (Pacific sardine, etc), a commonly caught species. This word can be written as "真鰮". Depending on the sardine's size, they are given different names: Romaji Kana Approximate Adult Size hirago ヒラご 2-3 cm koba コバ 10 cm chūba チュウバ 15 cm ōba オオバ 20 cm