*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of jinja

Borrowed from Japanese 神社 (じんじゃ, jinja), from Middle Chinese 神社, from Old Chinese 神社 (“sacrificial altar, shrine”), from 神 (*hlin, “deity, divine”) + 社 (*ɦljaːʔ, “Earth deity [and altar]”). Cognate with Mandarin 神社 (shén

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In this entry · 1 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Unnumbered source etymology

Original entry ↗
noun

A Shinto place of worship.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Borrowed from Japanese 神社 (じんじゃ, jinja), from Middle Chinese 神社, from Old Chinese 神社 (“sacrificial altar, shrine”), from 神 (*hlin, “deity, divine”) + 社 (*ɦljaːʔ, “Earth deity [and altar]”). Cognate with Mandarin 神社 (shénshè, “shrine”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

  • Borrowed-form mention神社ja
  • Derivation mention神社och · sacrificial altar, shrine
  • Compound component神och · deity, divine
  • Compound component社och · Earth deity [and altar]
  • Cognate mention神社cmn
Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "bor+",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ja",
        "3": "神社",
        "tr": "じんじゃ, jinja"
      },
      "expansion": "Borrowed from Japanese 神社 (じんじゃ, jinja)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ltc",
        "3": "神社"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle Chinese 神社"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "och",
        "3": "神社",
        "t": "sacrificial altar, shrine"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Chinese 神社 (“sacrificial altar, shrine”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "compound",
      "args": {
        "1": "och",
        "2": "神",
        "3": "社",
        "t1": "deity, divine",
        "t2": "Earth deity [and altar]",
        "nocat": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "神 (*hlin, “deity, divine”) + 社 (*ɦljaːʔ, “Earth deity [and altar]”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "cmn",
        "2": "神社",
        "3": "",
        "4": "shrine"
      },
      "expansion": "Mandarin 神社 (shénshè, “shrine”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "神社",
      "神社#Japanese"
    ],
    [
      "神社",
      "神社#Middle_Chinese"
    ],
    [
      "神社",
      "神社#Old_Chinese"
    ],
    [
      "神",
      "神#Old_Chinese"
    ],
    [
      "社",
      "社#Old_Chinese"
    ],
    [
      "神社",
      "神社#Mandarin"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A Shinto place of worship."
      ],
      "tags": [],
      "recordId": "b315aae0ee642c0baf8841dae8331fc0ad996cb307f27964c9203e187b7e3441",
      "rawRecordSha256": "27ff73c84492ed07b80f1c77fcdbce7f04b84953a87974231b04a2f9198ade51",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 4459139
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for jinja →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-amluamE