cơ niên

Vùng này từng trải qua một cơ niên khủng khiếp.

Definition

1. Noun (Archaic):
   • A year of scarcity or famine: Refers specifically to a year marked by poor harvests and severe food shortage.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • Vùng đó từng trải qua một cơ niên khủng khiếp. (That region once endured a terrible year of famine.)
  • Ghi chép lịch sử nhắc đến nhiều cơ niên trong triều đại ấy. (Historical records mention many years of scarcity during that dynasty.)

Advanced Usage

• The term is primarily found in historical or literary contexts to describe periods of agricultural failure and consequent hardship.

Word Origin and Notes

• Etymology: A compound of "cơ" (饥 - hunger, famine) and "niên" (年 - year). It is an archaic term, largely replaced in modern Vietnamese by phrases like "năm đói kém" or "năm mất mùa."
• Register: This is a formal, literary, and obsolete term. It is not used in contemporary everyday speech.

Synonyms

• Year of famine: A period of extreme scarcity of food.
• Year of dearth: A year of severe shortage.
• Lean year: A year where resources, especially food, are insufficient.

Related Terms

• Mất mùa (v): to have a crop failure.
  • Mưa bão khiến cả vùng mất mùa. (Storms caused the entire region to have a crop failure.)
• Đói kém (n): famine, scarcity.
  • Thời kỳ đói kém 1945 là một bi kịch. (The 1945 famine period was a tragedy.)