Terminology
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Issei | A Japanese language term used to specify the first generation of a Japanese family to immigrate from Japan. |
| Nisei | Children of the Issei (the first American-born generation). |
| Nikkei | A Japanese immigrant (or a descendant thereof) who is not a citizen of Japan. |
| Cenotaph | A memorial monument erected for a person whose remains are buried elsewhere. There is at least one cenotaph in the Auburn Cemetery and at least two cenotaphs in other cemeteries for people buried in the Auburn Cemetery. |
| Jizo (Ojizo-sama) | A Japanese guardian deity. Jizo statues are sometimes erected in places where tragedies occurred, especially those involving children. Two Jizo statues remain in the Auburn Pioneer Cemetery to commemorate the Kato children. |
| Obon | "Festival of the Dead"; a Buddhist festival usually held in July or August to welcome the return of the spirits of the ancestors. Many people celebrate by hanging paper lanterns or by performing folk dances and music. |
| Kaimyo | Posthumous name given to a Buddhist at the time of his or her death as the name they will be known by in the afterlife. Most of the cemetery’s Japanese language markers include the deceased person’s Kaimyo in the inscription’s central column. |
| Mizuko | Japanese term for a stillborn child. (水子) |
| Warashi | Japanese term for a child who died in infancy or early childhood. (童子) |
| Kanji | Written symbols, originally from Chinese, used in written Japanese. Along with hiragana and katakana, kanji is one of the three main writing systems for the Japanese language. The majority of the Japanese tombstones placed prior to World War II are written in these traditional characters. |
| Romaji | A system for writing Japanese words phonetically using Roman symbols (the English alphabet). In essence, the English alphabet is used phonetically in place of hiragana, katakana, and kanji. The stones for the more modern Japanese burials in the cemetery are written in romaji/English. |
| Nengō | Although Japan has used the Gregorian Calendar since 1873, it also continues to use a calendar system called nengo. In this system, the year is named for the imperial era plus the year within the given emperor’s reign; for example, the Gregorian year 2010 corresponds to the nengo year Heisei 22 (or H22)—Heisei is the current imperial era in Japan and 2010 was the 22nd year of the current emperor’s reign.
In Japan, there is a preference for nengo dates on official or government documents. According to our translator, many of the older Japanese tombstones in the Auburn cemetery employ nengo—rather than Gregorian—dates. |
| Double Wisteria Crest | A symbol of Jodo Shinshu Buddhism. It appears on many of the tombstones in the Auburn Pioneer Cemetery. |
| Auburn Pioneer Cemetery | Other historical names for the Auburn Pioneer Cemetery: The Faucett Cemetery, Old Cemetery, Cemetery at Slaughter, Japanese Cemetery, Christopher Cemetery |
| Auburn, Washington | Other names by which Auburn and the Auburn area have been known: White River, Slaughter, New Auburn, Auburn City, Christopher, Thomas, Aaron, Stuck |
| Similar, but not interchangeable, words that are used frequently in this website: | |
| Interred | Buried. |
| Interned | Sent to internment camp. Incarcerated. |
| Inurned | Burial of cremated remains. |