鎖国

1. Origins, structure, and basic meaning

• Structure: The spelling is 鎖国, read さこく, and it combines 鎖, meaning chain or lock, with 国, meaning country.
• Basic usage: 鎖国 is a national policy or condition of severely restricting or closing travel, trade, and other exchange with foreign countries.

2. Common pitfalls and similar expressions

• State restrictions rather than necessarily zero contact
  • Both examples use the form 鎖国. The history example studies trade during isolation, so the term should not be overgeneralized to mean that every form of external contact always disappeared.
• Trade under restrictions and a fictional island reopening
  • 歴史の授業で鎖国中の貿易について調べた。 — In history class, we studied trade during the period of national isolation.
  • この小説は架空の島国が鎖国を解くまでを描く。 — This novel depicts a fictional island nation ending its isolation.