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Is しゃぶしゃぶ typically written in hiragana rather than katakana? If so, why is it written in hiragana?

Wikipedia says that it is onomatopoeia:

The term is an onomatopoeia, derived from the sound emitted when the ingredients are stirred in the cooking pot.

And I thought that onomatopoeia was typically done in katakana (though the latter citation gives some exceptions).

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Andrew Grimm
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  • @hippietrail Wikipedia says it's onomatopoeia, not mimetic http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shabu-shabu . I'd be inclined to agree, because all uncooked meat looks the same to me. – Andrew Grimm May 11 '14 at 06:44
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    There are some contradictory “standards/suggestions” whether onomatopoeia should be written in kanakana or hiragana. People generally use both and prefer one to another in individual words. – Yang Muye May 11 '14 at 06:51
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    @hippietrail from the Wikipedia article: "derived from the sound emitted when the ingredients are stirred in the cooking pot." – Andrew Grimm May 11 '14 at 07:04
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    @AndrewGrimm: OK great then this one really is onomatopoeia. Note that I was sneakily careful not to say it wasn't, just to wonder aloud about it. – hippietrail May 11 '14 at 07:06
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    @hippietrail I do that as well. – Andrew Grimm May 11 '14 at 07:07
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    Just to point out... しゃぶしゃぶ is not actually 擬音語・擬声語 here. It's *derived* from onomatopoeia, but does not actually work as a representation of the sound anymore. The general tendency of writing 擬音語 in katakana would not need to apply. (Note that wikipedia's definition of onomatopoeia is wide enough to be practically useless, but is largely irrelevant to Japanese) – jkerian May 11 '14 at 12:25

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It's always written in hiragana. I can't tell you why though. Allegedly it was named しゃぶしゃぶ because of the sound it makes when you take the beef slice through the hot water twice with your chopsticks.

The word しゃぶしゃぶ is never used for other purposes than to refer to the cuisine, at least in contemporary Japan.

Enno Shioji
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    For what it's worth, [「擬態語はひらがな、擬音語はカタカナ」教育の功罪](http://www.excite.co.jp/News/reviewbook/20140108/E1389109814909.html) – Yang Muye May 11 '14 at 07:12