The Case & Conjunctive Particles つ
The case particle つ is a fascinating example of an archaic grammatical feature that has somehow withstood all odds, despite having such a limited role even as long ago as Old Japanese.
Etymologically unrelated, we will also look at the conjunctive particle つ, which can be viewed as the predecessor to the particle たり when showing repetitive back and forth.
The Case Particle つ
Throughout the history of Japanese, the particles が・の have unilaterally been used to indicate attributes as well as the nominative case (主格). Yet, the case particle つ has only ever been used to indicate attributes (属格).
Although the sample size of instances of つ in Classical Japanese pales in comparison to how many examples can be found of が・の, significant overlap can be found, suggesting that at the very least, significant dialectal variation must have existed as to which which was preferred.
Words Commonly Paired with ～つ
While most instances of つ are archaisms, instances from the 万葉集 still sprinkle poetry in the modern era, so with that in mind, consider the words listed in the charts below, which are specifically chosen for showing up in modern dictionaries.
Morphemes pertaining to Place + ～つ
| Attributive Morpheme | Meaning | Example Word | Meaning |
| 天（あま） | heaven | 天つ印 | unsurpassable boundary in the heavens, a.k.a, the Milky Way |
| 家 | house | 家つ鳥 | decorative word1 which appears with the word 鶏（かけ） meaning “chicken” |
| 海 | sea | 海つ路 | sea route |
| 沖 | offing | 沖つ風 | offshore wind |
| 奥 | recesses | 奥つ城 | ancestral grave |
| 上（かみ） | up | 上つ瀬 | rapids upstream |
| 国 | country | 国つ罪 | sins committed by those in the land (as opposed to sins committed by the gods) |
| 島 | island | 島つ鳥 | cormorant |
| 下（しも） | below | 下つ方 | those of lower status |
| 外（と） | outside | 外つ国 | foreign land |
| 中 | between | 中つ国 | Japan2 |
| 秀（ほ） | leaf | 秀つ枝3 | upper branch |
Morphemes pertaining to Time (Or Place)
| Attributive Morpheme | Meaning | Example Word | Meaning |
| 先 | prior | 先つ年 | prior year |
| 時 | time | 時つ風 | winds that blow at just the right time |
| 常（とこ） | forever | 常つ御門 | forever emperor |
| 遠（とほ） | distant | 遠つ神祖（かむおや） | distant ancestors who were kami |
| 元 | formerly | 元つ人 | person one was once close with |
| 遠（をと） | distant | 遠つ日4 | the year before last |
Archaisms which Fit neither Scenario
While examples which pertain to location/time are the ones which have persisted in to the present, there are still many examples in Old Japanese which fall under neither category.
| Archaism | Meaning |
| 醜（しこ）つ翁（おきな） | ugly old man |
| 花つ月 | March (lunar calendar) |
| 秀（ほ）つ鷹 | superb hawk |
| 秀（ほ）つ手 | superb skill |
| 斎（ゆ）つ磐群 | sacred rock formation |
Complex Examples
Putting aside whether the phrase is moribund, some examples of つ are quite complex in meaning, suggesting that it had just as wide of a range as の・が, which is corroborated by those particles appearing after the same morphemes.
| Archaism | Meaning |
| 天つ空 | ①the great skies above ②absent-mindedness |
| 御食（みけ）つ国 | land in which the emperor provides his people food |
| 棚機つ女・織女 | ①female weaver ②Vega |
Modern Usage of つ
Since Middle Japanese, つ has only appeared in fossilized compound nouns, but there are some examples such as 睫毛 (eyelash(es)) which have persisted as commonplace nouns5, although they are exceptionally rare.
1. 滝つ瀬とは川の流れの激しいところだ。
A takitsuse is a place where the current of a river is violent.
2. しかも天日のごとく若くかがやかしく、悩みと憂いが兆しかけた眉は凛々しさを加え、豊葦原中国にまた見ること叶わぬような美しい壮夫であった。
Moreover, he was a beautiful, splendid man that she could never see with the likes of Toyoashihara no Nakatsukuni, though he was young and bright like the heavenly sun in addition to the chivalry in his eyebrows which foretold sorrow and grief.
From 『獅子・孔雀』 by 三島由紀夫.
3. どのような禍津日も、わたくし共の恋の樹を枯らす力は有ちませぬ。
No calamitous day could have the power to cut down our tree of love.
From 『獅子・孔雀 』by 三島由紀夫.
The Suffix ～づから
A fascinating use of the particle つ is its appearance, albeit voiced, in the suffix ～づから. If written in kanji, から would be best spelled as 柄. This suffix lives on in words like 自ら (myself) and 自ずから (of one’s own accord), but it can also be seen in 口づから (in one’s own words).
4. 御門の、御くちづからごて給へるなり。
The emperor had said this himself.
From the 『源氏物語』.
In Classical Japanese, this suffix could also still indicate “relationship” when attached to a noun related to human relationships—e.g. 従妹づから (cousin relationship).
The Conjunctive Particle つ
The conjunctive particle つ has been used throughout Japanese to indicate two repetitive actions which go back and forth. While it has since been replaced by the conjunctive particle たり in Modern Japanese, its occasional appearance in set expressions in Modern Japanese cannot be ignored. These phrases often exhibit extensive sound changes, which can get in the way of proper identification.
5. 元助は行きつ戻りつしながら待った。
Gensuke waited, walking to and fro.
6. 矯めつ6眇めつ眺める。
To take a good look at something.
7. 彰蔵はとつおいつ7思案する嫌いがある。
Shozo has the tendency to ponder over this and that.
8. 夢のなかではいつも父と追いつ追われつして、親雄が殺されるか父が殺されるかした。
In Chikao’s dreams, it was always a cat chase with his father, and it was either him or his father being killed.
From 『獅子』 by 三島由紀夫.
9. 浮きつ沈みつ
Floating up and down
10. 御米は依然として、のつそつ8床の中で動いていた。
Oyone was still stretching and crouching in her bed.
From 『門』 by 夏目漱石.
11. 組んず解れつ9の大乱闘
A major brawl, locked in a grapple
The Predecessor ～み～み
Just as the conjunctive particle たり has replaced つ in Modern Japanese, つ had replaced the conjunctive particle み in Old Japanese. Granted, in Old Japanese, the conjunctive particle み was largely confined to the pattern “連用形 of V + ～み + V～ず + ～み” to show alternating conditions between the affirmative and the negative.
12. 降りみ降らずみ (Old Japanese)
From raining to not raining
参照
上代日本語の属格「つ」と数詞についての仮説 by 平田裕.
- 枕詞 are figures of speech which are used as epithets in association with certain words. In this instance, 家つ鳥 literally means “domesticated bird in the home,” which is most certainly a great description of a chicken. ↩︎
- 中つ国 is interchangeable with 豊葦原中国. In Japanese mythology, “Japan” is the middle world between Yomi 黄泉 (the underworld) and Takamagahara 高天原 (the High Plain of Heaven). ↩︎
- The word 秀つ枝, which is also spelled as 上枝, is etymologically fascinating, as it implies a phonological and etymological connection between the words 葉 (leaf) and 穂 (ear (of a cereal plant)), with ほ constituting an irregular case of /a/ → /o/, contributing to its disappearance in the modern lexicon. Interestingly, the antonym of ほつえ still remains as しづえ, which notably features a deletion of the syllable /ta/. However, as is apparent from the word forms した and しも, the base morpheme is /shi/, with /ta/ and /mo/ respectively being affixes whose functions have unfortunately been lost to time. ↩︎
- Through several sound changes, this word gave rise to the Modern Japanese version おととい. ↩︎
- Speculatively, some have suggested that the counter つ may actually derive from the case particle つ. See citation above. ↩︎
- In this expression, 矯める has the meaning of “to correct/rectify,” and 眇める has the meaning of “to squint with one eye.” ↩︎
- とつおいつ derives from the contraction of 取りつ置きつ, which itself describes taking something in one’s hands then putting it back down. ↩︎
- のつそっつ is the contraction of のっつそっつ, which itself is a contraction of のりつ反りつ. In this expression, 伸る means “to stretch,” and 反る means “to arch (backward).” ↩︎
- 組んず解れつ derives from the contraction of 組みつ解れつ. In this expression, 組む means “to grapple” and 解れる means “to unravel.” ↩︎