先人|せんじんsenjin[0]heiban (flat)

1. nounpredecessor; pioneer; ancestor
   彼かれは先人せんじんと同おなじ道みちを歩あゆむことを名誉めいよだと信しんじている。↗

   He believes it to be an honor to follow in his predecessor's footsteps.

• Synonym先祖せんぞNeutralFamily ancestors, as in 「先祖代々」; stresses blood ties, while 「先人」 covers people of the past in general, not just one's own family.
• Synonym祖先そせんNeutralAncestors, including evolutionary ancestors in biology; stresses bloodline origins, while 「先人」 broadly means people of the past.
• Synonym先つ祖さきつおやWrittenWritten/formal prose for distant ancestors; archaic and almost never used in modern Japanese.
• Synonym先世WrittenWritten/formal prose for previous generations, also one's previous life; fairly rare, and the latter sense has Buddhist overtones.
• Antonym後世こうせいNeutralAntonym: posterity, later generations; the counterpart of 「先人」.
• Antonym子孫しそんNeutralAntonym: descendants, one's children and grandchildren; the counterpart of ancestors, stressing blood ties.
• Antonym後人こうじんWrittenWritten/formal prose antonym: people of later ages, those who come after; the direct opposite of 「先人」.

Use 「先人」 for predecessors and people of the past, as in 「先人の知恵」 and 「先人に学ぶ」. For family ancestors say 「先祖」 or 「祖先」; 「先つ祖」 and 「先世」 are rare written words. Opposites: 「後人」, 「後世」, 「子孫」.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

1. 昔むかしの人ひと。
2. 死しんだ父ちち。また、祖先そせん。