塚

1. Origins, structure, and basic meaning

• Structure: The one-character noun 塚 is read つか and denotes a grave or a raised burial mound.
• Basic usage: It is used for an old grave itself or for a small mound treated as a visible place in the landscape.

2. Common pitfalls and similar expressions

• Not every mound
  • A raised patch of earth is not automatically a 塚. In these contexts the mound is associated with burial or remembrance.
• Spatial patterns
  • 塚が残る presents the mound as what remains, while 塚の周り uses it as the reference point for the surrounding area.