The Lost Kana: ゐ (wi) → い (i) & ゑ (we) → え (e)
The kana ゐ (wi) and ゑ (we) are two of Japanese writing’s “lost characters” - hiragina eliminated during the 1946 orthographic reforms. Originally representing /wi/ and /we/, they merged with い (i) and え (e) respectively as the /w/ sounds gradually disappeared before these vowels. This led to restriction of を to particle usage only.
The ゐ → い and ゑ → え changes represent mergers - originally distinct sounds becoming identical. This type of sound change is common in language evolution, with spelling systems often lagging behind pronunciation changes by centuries. The systematic loss of /w/ before /i/ and /e/ (but not /a/, /u/, /o/) shows how phonetic environments influence sound change.
This elimination was part of broader simplification affecting:
- ゑ (we) → え (e)
- へ → え in words like まへ → まえ
The Classic Examples
ゐる → いる
Classical: ゐる (wiru)
Modern: いる (iru)
ゑびす → えびす
Classical: ゑびす (webisu)
Modern: えびす (ebisu)
These fundamental examples show how pronunciation changed over centuries while spelling remained archaic until the post-war reforms.
Other Examples
ゐ → い changes:
- かはゐゐ → かわいい
- ゐの中 → いの中
- ゐどころ → いどころ
ゑ → え changes:
- ゑん → えん
- ゑがく → えがく
- ゑもじ → えもじ
Sound Change Timeline
Heian Period (794-1185): ゐ and ゑ clearly pronounced /wi/ and /we/
Edo Period (1603-1868): /wi/ → /i/ and /we/ → /e/ changes largely complete in most dialects
1946: Official elimination from standard orthography
The Gojūon Connection
In classical Japanese, both ゐ and ゑ were part of the wa-line (わ行):
わ - ゐ - う - ゑ - を
wa - wi - u - we - wo
Modern Japanese retains only わ (wa) and を (wo, as particle pronounced “o”). The middle three positions show the systematic loss of /w/ before certain vowels.
Where You’ll Still See ゐ and ゑ
- Classical Literature, especially poetry and drama The Tower of Babel, 1936
- Historical Documents and stone inscriptions
- Traditional Shop Names for aesthetic effect