sakoku

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noun

The isolationist foreign policy of Japan between the 1630s and 1866, in which entry to and exit from Japan were severely restricted.

OriginJapanese 鎖国 →
Scrabble 14
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Meanings

nounsakoku (uncountable)
  1. historicaluncountableThe isolationist foreign policy of Japan between the 1630s and 1866, in which entry to and exit from Japan were severely restricted.

Origin

  1. Japanese鎖国
  2. Englishsakoku

Borrowed from Japanese 鎖国, literally "closed country".

More words from Japanese

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

sakoku. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sakoku

MLA

“sakoku.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sakoku. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “sakoku,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sakoku.

Source: sakoku on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.