county

1. Origins, structure, and basic meaning

• Structure: The on reading is ぐん, and the kun reading is こおり. It has 10 strokes and relates to a county-level district and its nonurban areas.
• Basic usage: 郡 is read ぐん, and 郡部 is read ぐんぶ.

2. Common pitfalls and similar expressions

• 郡 / 郡部
  • 郡 means county or district and is read ぐん. It refers to a county or county-level administrative district.
  • かつてこの地域は三つの郡に分かれていた。 means “This region was once divided into three counties.”
  • 郡部 means rural district or nonurban area and is read ぐんぶ. It refers to county areas or nonurban districts contrasted with urban areas.
  • 調査では都市部と郡部の交通事情を比較した。 means “The survey compared transportation conditions in urban and nonurban areas.”