Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

ryukyu

/ˈɹjuːkjuː/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.13 in modern English

Syllables: ryukyu
IPA: /ˈɹjuːkjuː/

16

Scrabble Score

6

Letters

1

Syllables

4

Unique Chars

Meaning

name

A chain of islands in Japan roughly between Kyushu and Taiwan.

Example Sentences

"White Butterflies in Japan.[...]Shortly after this I left Yokohama for the Ryukyu Islands, and next had my attention attracted by the "White" in the Bay of Kagoshima."
"About 140 people live on Kuchinoerabu island in the Ryukyu archipelago, which is approximately 50 miles (80 kilometers) southwest of the main southern island of Kyushu."

Etymology

From Japanese 琉球 (Ryūkyū), from Middle Chinese 流求 (MC ljuw gjuw), a Chinese exonym for the island kingdom, of unclear origin. Doublet of Liuqiu.

Origin

Source language: Japanese

Word Breakdown

Root: 琉球, -

Inflected Forms

Ryūkyū (alternative) Riukiu (alternative)

Derived Forms

Ryukyuan

Synonyms

the Ryukyus Liuqiu Liuchiu

Questions

How do you pronounce ryukyu?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈɹjuːkjuː/.
What does ryukyu mean?: A chain of islands in Japan roughly between Kyushu and Taiwan.
Where does ryukyu come from?: It is traced to Japanese.

How to pronounce ryukyu

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “ryukyu”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈɹjuːkjuː/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “ryukyu”.
Repeat and practice — Say “ryukyu” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.