Koi

For other uses, see Koi (disambiguation).

Koi fish
Domesticated
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Cypriniformes
Family: Cyprinidae
Genus: Cyprinus
Species:
C. rubrofuscus
Variety:
C. r. var. koi or nishikigoi
Trinomial name
Cyprinus rubrofuscus var. koi or nishikigoi
Synonyms
  • Cyprinus carpio Linnaeus, 1758
  • Cyprinus carpio ssp. rubrofuscus Lacepède, 1803
  • Cyprinus carpio haematopterus Temminck & Schlegel, 1846
Several koi swim around in a pond in Japan. (video)
A school of koi containing multiple different varieties

Koi (鯉, English: /ˈkɔɪ/, Japanese: [koꜜi]), or more specifically nishikigoi (錦鯉, Japanese: [ɲiɕi̥kiꜜɡoi], literally "brocaded carp"), are colored varieties of carp (Cyprinus sp.) that are kept for decorative purposes in outdoor koi ponds or water gardens.

Koi is an informal name for the colored variants of carp kept for ornamental purposes. There are many varieties of ornamental koi, originating from breeding that began in Niigata, Japan in the early 19th century.[1][2][3]

Several varieties are recognized by Japanese breeders and owners, distinguished by coloration, patterning, and scalation. Some of the major colors are white, black, red, orange, yellow, blue, brown and cream, besides metallic shades like gold and silver-white ('platinum') scales. The most popular category of koi is the Gosanke, which is made up of the Kōhaku, Taishō Sanshoku and Shōwa Sanshoku varieties.

  1. ^ Japanese Ornamental Koi Carp: Origin, Variation and Genetics Archived 20 December 2020 at the Wayback Machine May 2015
  2. ^ Ojiya Nishikigoi no Sato Museum
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference znahisja was invoked but never defined (see the help page).