Bonkura (ぼんくら - Idiot)

Yesterday I introduced you to the Japanese word 間抜け (manuke - stupid).

There is another Japanese term, ぼんくら (bonkura), which has the similar meaning of "manuke."

ぼん (bon) means "tray," but it is also a gambling term that means "gambling parlor."

くら (kura) means "dark," but it also means "careless" in the gambling field.

That is to say, "bonkura" originally represented a careless person/personality in gambling, and it has come to mean a stupid person/personality.

Since being careless could become a matter of life and death for gamblers, "bonkura" was one of the most hated personality in gambling.

ぼんくら

昨日は「間抜け」という言葉を紹介しましたが、それと似た意味を持つ言葉に「ぼんくら」があります。

「ぼん」は "tray" を意味しますが、賭博用語で「賭場」 (gambling parlor) を表します。

「くら」は "dark" を意味しますが、賭博では「目が利かない」(careless) ことを表します。

すなわち「ぼんくら」とは、賭博において不注意な人間や性格を表し、そこから間抜けな人/性格を指すようになったというわけです。

博徒において不注意であることは死活問題であるため、「ぼんくら」はもっとも嫌われた気質の一つでした。

• くら (kura) means "dark," but it also means "careless" in the gambling field.
• くら (kura) means "dark," but it also means "careless" in gambling.

  The japanese version never says "gambling world".

• Since being careless could become a matter of life and death for gamblers, "bonkura" was one of the most hated personality in gambling.
• Since being careless could become a matter of life or death for gamblers, "bonkura" was one of the most hated personalities in gambling.

  Is bonkura a person or personality? It is unclear.　曖昧ですね！

if Lang-8 supported it, all foreign language words are in italics.