ikebana

[ ik-uh-bah-nuh; Japanese ee-ke-bah-nah ]

noun

1. the Japanese art of arranging flowers.

ikebana

/ ˌiːkəˈbɑːnə /

noun

1. the Japanese decorative art of flower arrangement

Word History and Origins

Origin of ikebana¹

First recorded in 1900–05; from Japanese, equivalent to ike(y) “to make live,” causative of ik- “live” (from unattested ika-i ) + -bana combining form of hana “flower” (earlier fana, from unattested pana )