Why japanese spell "tabako" or cigarette in Hiragana and not Katakana?

Question

Japanese usually write words in Hiragana only if the word is originally Japanese terms. Tabako sounds like tobacco, and it's english, so japanese should write "tabako" in Katakana instead. Is "tabako" is an original Japanese term?

Answer 1

Yes, you are right.
Most Western name is written in Katakana.
But Tabako is different.
http://www.rose.ne.jp/~perceus/horo/senbai2.html

I checked some information in Japanese.

Basically the word is took from Spanish or Portuguese word, "tabaco" or "tabacco".
It was long time ago (in 16 century is the first time to Japan), and at that moment, it meant the leaves itself (not rolled cigarette).

Even today, the imported leaves or plants are named as タバコ (Tabako in Katakana) in the encyclopedia.
And, now you know, the Tobaco as a product is named たばこ (Tabako in Hiragana).
Today, there is no chance to see those leaves for us. Maybe people forgetting it was the name for the leaves.

Let's not to forget that this was written in Kanji 煙草 as well before WW2.
http://www.jti.co.jp/Culture/museum/tokubetu/eventMar05/img/01_01.jpg
http://www.jti.co.jp/Culture/museum/tabako/meiji/images/iwaya_kanban_91.jpg
(Advertisement and a plate of Ciger shoop. In this era, Japanese sentence was written from the right to left.)

Answer 2

Actually, it is often written in katakana.

The main reason you'll see it in hiragana is because it was imported before the Meiji era. Loanwords that old can usually be written in either hiragana or kanji. For instance you have 麦酒 for beer (appears on cans all the time) and 天ぷら for tempura (comes from Portuguese).

Oh, and the previous poster is probably thinking of zubon for "trousers." It comes from some European language (don't remember which). But that's written in katakana nowadays.

Answer 3

usually, if the word does not origin from Japan, it is written in katakana. But, I'm not too sure why they wrote it in hiragana.

Possibly the word was originally from japan (i doubt)
or they've just written it in hiragana. I asked my japanese teacher once about something similar, and the answer was just.. a matter of personal choice. (e.g. nana and shichi -which one do you use and when? because in many cases you can use either)

Answer 4

i'm guessing, here, but it may be because the word is so old - perhaps it was brought to japan by the portuguese, and has been around so long that it's been "adopted" into the native syllabary. i forget the japanese word for soap (zuban?), but i seem to recall it's portuguese - is it in katakana?

Answer 5

THERE ARE PLENTY OF LETTER & WORDS IN JAPANESE LANGUAGE.ONLY10% KNOWS THE COMPLEATE LANGUAGE THATS WHY THEY ARE LIKE THIS