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I was considering this word 'ippu' 2 syllables in English as a brand name - no meaning as far as I know but there were vague references online to Japan. Anyone heard that word before?

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Ippu can indeed seem like a Romanized Japanese word (i.e., a Japanese word written in Latin alphabet).

  • 一風 (ippu, literally "one wind" or "one style"):
    • An adverb that means "in a way", "somehow (different)", etc. (Usually used with 変わった)
    • Used in some Japanese proper names. For example it is used as part of 一風堂, a ramen restaurant chain. 堂 (do) is a suffix for stores.
  • 一封 (ippu, literally "one seal", "one envelope"):
    • Used to refer to money or a document sealed in an envelope.

一風 is actively used as a brand name (or as part of a brand name) in Japan. As a native Japanese speaker, if I saw 'ippu' on the street outside Japan, I would suspect it is perhaps related to Japan. (But I also know a coincidence like this happens often.)

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  • I could go for some 一風堂 right now. So hungry...
    – istrasci
    Commented Oct 5, 2020 at 3:19
  • Ok thank you that's very helpful 🙏
    – airwalker
    Commented Oct 5, 2020 at 5:57
  • Could it not also be 一歩, one pawn in shogi?
    – Jan
    Commented Oct 5, 2020 at 6:38
  • @Jan I think "one pawn in shogi" is normally counted as 歩{ふ} + 一枚{いちまい}. 一歩{いっぷ}千金{せんきん} is a well-known aphorism at shogi game. Commented Oct 5, 2020 at 8:10
  • @kimiTanaka Ah, so いっぷ would only apply to that aphorism?
    – Jan
    Commented Oct 5, 2020 at 10:13

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