Japanese Tableware Vocabulary | English Guide to Pottery Terms

Essential Japanese Pottery Terms in English

Whether you're shopping for Japanese ceramics, visiting a pottery studio, or explaining your collection to friends, this guide helps you navigate the rich vocabulary of Japanese tableware.

Types of Ware

• Toki (陶器) — Earthenware/stoneware, fired at lower temperatures, porous
• Jiki (磁器) — Porcelain, fired at high temperatures, non-porous
• Yakimono (焼き物) — General term for all fired ceramics ("fired things")
• Setomono (瀬戸物) — Colloquial term for all pottery (from Seto city)
• Urushi (漆) — Lacquerware, made from tree sap lacquer

Tableware Shapes

• Chawan (茶碗) — Rice bowl or tea bowl
• Yunomi (湯呑み) — Tea cup (no handle)
• Tokkuri (徳利) — Sake flask
• Ochoko (お猪口) — Small sake cup
• Kobachi (小鉢) — Small bowl for side dishes
• Kozara (小皿) — Small plate
• Donburi (丼) — Large deep bowl for rice dishes
• Kakuzara (角皿) — Rectangular plate
• Hachi (鉢) — Large serving bowl

Techniques & Decoration

• Sometsuke (染付) — Blue-and-white underglaze painting
• Kintsugi (金継ぎ) — Golden repair of broken pottery
• Kannyu (貫入) — Crackle glaze pattern
• Yūyaku (釉薬) — Glaze
• Yakishime (焼締め) — Unglazed, high-fired ware

Famous Production Areas

• Arita-yaki / Imari-yaki — Saga: blue-and-white porcelain
• Hasami-yaki — Nagasaki: functional modern porcelain
• Mashiko-yaki — Tochigi: rustic folk pottery
• Bizen-yaki — Okayama: unglazed wood-fired ware
• Kutani-yaki — Ishikawa: colorful overglaze porcelain
• Mino-yaki — Gifu: versatile, includes Shino and Oribe styles