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Qiulong

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Ancientseal scriptforqiuCầu"a dragon"

Qiulong(simplified Chinese:Cù Long;traditional Chinese:Cầu long;pinyin:qíulóng;Wade–Giles:ch'iu-lung;lit. 'curling dragon') orqiuwas aChinese dragonthat is contradictorily defined as "horned dragon" and "hornless dragon".

Name

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ThisChinesedragon name can be pronouncedqiuorjiuand writtenCầuorCù.

Characters

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Thevariant Chinese charactersfor theqiuorjiudragon areCầuandCù,which combine the "insectradical"Trùngwithphoneticsofjiu丩"connect" andyin乚"hidden". ThisTrùngradical is typically used inChinese charactersfor insects, worms, reptiles, and dragons (e.g.,shenThận,jiaoGiao,andhongHồng). Compare the wordjiuCủorCủ"twist; entangle; unite" that is written with the "silk radical"Tiand the same alternate phonetics asqiuCầuorCù.

QiuCùorCầuis also an uncommonChinese surname.For example, Qiuranke ZhuanCầu râu khách truyền"The Legend of the Curly-whiskered Guest" is a story by theTang dynastywriterDu GuangtingĐỗ quang đình(850–933 CE), and Qiu ZhongCù trọngwas thecourtesy nameof theQing dynastypainterLi Fangying.

InJapanese,thekanji"Chinese characters"CùorCầuare sometimes used for themizuchiGiao"river dragon".

Etymologies

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Sinological linguists have proposed severaletymologiesfor theqiuorjiuCầudragon.

Bernhard KarlgrenreconstructedOld Chinesepronunciations ofqiu< *g'yŏgorjiu< *kyŏgforCầu"horned dragon" and觓"horn-shaped; long and curved".[1]This latter word combines the "horn radical"GiácandCầu'sjiu丩phonetic.

Carr follows Karlgren's reconstructions and suggestsqiu< *g'yŏgorjiu< *kyŏgCầuis "part of a 'twist; coil; wrap' word family"[2]that includes:

  • qiu< *g'yôg觩"long and curved; curled up horn"
  • jiu< *klyŏgCù"curving branch; twist"
  • miu< *mlyŏgorjiu< *klyŏgMâu"bind; wind around; wrap; twist"
  • liu< *glyôgorlu< *glyôkLục"join forces; unite"
  • jiao< *klôgKeo"glue; unite"
  • liao< *glyôg摎"tie around; strangle"

This "twisting; coiling" etymology can explain both the meanings "horned dragon; twisted horns" and "curling; wriggling" below.

Schuessler reconstructs Old Chineseqiu< *giuorjiu< *kiufor觓or觩"horn-shaped; long and curved" andCầu"horned dragon",[3]and cites Coblin's comparison of "horned dragon" with WrittenTibetanklu"Nāga,serpent spirit ".[4]Schuessler comparesjiu< *kiuʔCủ"to twist, plait" and concludes the "most likely etymology is 'twisting, wriggling'".

Meanings

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Chinese dictionariesgive threeqiuCầuorCùmeanings: "dragon without horns", "dragon with horns", and "curling; coiling".

Hornless dragon

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SeveralChinese classic textsand commentaries from theHan dynastyidentifiedqiuCầuas a "hornless dragon; dragon without horns", which is interpreted as "young dragon; immature dragon".

The 2nd century BCEChuciusesqiuCùseven times, which is more frequently than any other classical text. The standard Sibu BeiyaoBốn bộ bị muốnedition gives the character asCùinstead ofCầu.Qiuis a dragon name in four contexts. The first usesyuqiuNgọc cù"jade hornless-dragon"; "I yoked a team of jade dragons to a phoenix-figured car, And waited for the wind to come, to soar up on my journey."[5]The second usesqiulongCù Long"hornless dragon"; "Where are the hornless dragons which carry bears on their backs for sport?"[6]In both contexts, commentary of Wang YiVương dật(d. 158 CE) saysqiumeans "hornless dragon" andlongmeans "horned dragon". The third usesqingqiuThanh cù"green dragon" referring to the legendaryShunas Chong HuaTrọng hoa;"With a team of azure dragons, white serpents in the traces, I rode with Chong Hua in the Garden of Jasper."[7]Wang notesqiuandchiare types oflong"dragons". The fourth usesqiuCùalone; "With team of dragons I mount the heavens, In ivory chariot borne aloft."[8]

The 121 CEShuowen Jiezidictionary gives inconsistent definitions ofqiuCầu.Some early editions defineLong vô giác giả"a dragon without horns", while later editions defineLong tử có giác giả"a young dragon with horns". Carr notes the discrepancy of threeShuowendefinitions for "hornless dragon":qiuCầu,jiaoGiao,andchiLi.[9]TheShuowen Jiezischolar Zhu JunshengChu tuấn thanh(1788–1834 CE) explains that malelongLong"dragons" have horns and female ones do not, and among young dragons,jiaoGiaohas one horn,qiuCầuhas two, andchiLiis hornless.

A few later sources, such as the c. 1011 CEGuangyunrime dictionary,concur with earlyShuowen Jiezieditions and defineqiuCầuas "hornless dragon", but most dictionaries define a contrast set betweenqiuCầu"horned dragon" andchiLi"hornless dragon".

Horned dragon

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DaoistXianriding horned dragons.[10]

The c. 139 BCEHuainanzi"Peering into the Obscure" chapter (6) mentionsqingqiuThanh cầu"green horned-dragon" twice. First, "The Fable of the Dragons and the Mud-Eels" uses it withchichiXích li"red hornless-dragon"; "When the red hornless dragon and the green horned dragon roamed the land of ChiKý,the sky was limpid and the earth undisturbed. "[11]The commentary of Gao YuCao dục(fl.205 CE) notesqingqiuandchichiare types oflongLong"dragons", but without mentioning horns. Second, a description ofFu XiandNüwa,who are represented as having dragon tails, usesqingqiuwithyinglongỨng long"winged dragon"; "They rode the thunder chariot, using winged dragons as the inner pair and green dragons as the outer pair."[12]

The c. 100 BCEShiji"Records of the Grand Historian"biography ofSima Xiangruquotes hisfuPhúpoem entitledZixuGiả dối"Sir Fantasy". Like theHuaiananzi,it contrastsqingqiuThanh cầu"green horned-dragon" withchichiXích li"red hornless-dragon", which Watson translates "horned dragon" and "hornless dragon".[13]

Ge Hong's 4th century CEBaopuziBão Phác Tửhas four references. It mentions:jiuCù"As to the flying to the sky of thek'iuof the pools, this is his union with the clouds ",shenjiuThần cù"divine horned-dragon" "If a pond inhabited by fishes and gavials is drained off, the divinek'iugo away ", andqingjiuThanh cù"green horned-dragon" "The ts'ui k'iu (kingfisher-k'iu) has no wings and yet flies upwards to the sky "," Place the shape (i.e. an image of this dragon) in a tray, and the kingfisher-k'iu(shall) descend in a dark vapoury haze ".[14]

The c. 230 CEGuangyadictionary definesqiuCầu(written with a rareMãnh"frog" -radical graphic variant) as "horned dragon" andchiLias "hornless dragon". This semantic contrast is repeated in later dictionaries such as the 997 CELongkan Shou gianand the c. 1080 CEPiya,which says: "If a dragon has scales, he is calledkiao-lung(Giao long); if wings,ying-lung(Ứng long); if a horn,k'iu-lung(Cù Long); and if he has no horn, he is calledch'i-lung(Li long). "[15]

In traditionalChinese art,dragons are commonly represented with two horns. According to the 2nd century CEQian fu lun,the dragon's "horns resemble those of a stag".[16]The 1578 CEBencao Gangmumateria medicaprescribeslongjueLong giác"dragon horn", "For convulsions, fevers, diarrhea with fever and hardened belly. Taken continuously it lightens the body, enlightens the soul and prolongs life."[17]

Curling

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Qiucan mean "curling; twisting; coiling; wriggling; writhing" in Chinesecompounds.For instance:

  • qiupanCù bàn"curled up like a dragon; curling and twisting (esp. tree roots)"
  • jiaoqiuGiao cù"coil like a dragon"
  • qiuxuRâu quai nón"curly beard; curly mustache"
  • qiuranCầu râu"curly whiskers"

Besides the four "hornless dragon" examples above, threeChucicontexts useqiuin words describing dragons "coiling; wriggling; writhing". Two useyouqiuẤu cùto describe thecanglongThương LongAzure Dragonconstellation: "I rode in the ivory chariot of the Great Unity: The coiling Green Dragon ran in the left-hand traces; The White Tiger made the right hand of my team";[18]"To hang at my girdle the coiling Green Dragon, To wear at my belt the sinuous rainbow serpent."[19]One usesliuqiu蟉 cùwithchiLi"hornless dragon": "They lined water monsters up to join them in the dance: How their bodies coiled and writhed in undulating motion!"[20]

Marduk and dragon from aBabyloniancylinder seal.

Mythic parallels

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The ancient ChinesejiuCầu"horned dragon" is analogous with theMountain Horned Dragonlizard and several legendary creatures inComparative mythology.

Assumingtrans-cultural diffusion,MacKenzie suggests that the Chinese "horned-dragon, or horned-serpent" derives from the EgyptianOsiris"water-serpent".[21]The ChineseHui peoplehave a myth about a silver-horned dragon that controls rainfall.[22]

InBabylonian mythology,the deityMarduksupposedly rode a horned dragon when he defeatedTiamat,and it became his emblem. InPersian mythology,the heroGarshaspkilled anAži Sruvara"horned dragon". InGreek mythology,the two-headedAmphisbaenadragon was represented with horns.

References

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  1. ^(Karlgren 1957:274)
  2. ^(Carr 1990:151-2)
  3. ^(Schuessler 2007:435)
  4. ^(Coblin 1986:130)
  5. ^(Li Sao,tr. Hawkes 1985:73)
  6. ^(Heavenly Questions,tr. Hawkes 1985:128)
  7. ^(Thiệp giangCrossing the River, tr. Hawkes 1985:160)
  8. ^(Thông lộ,tr. Hawkes 1985:271)
  9. ^(Carr 1990:93-4)
  10. ^Werner, E. T. C.(1922).Myths & Legends of China.New York: George G. Harrap & Co. Ltd.Retrieved2007-03-14.(Project GutenbergeText 15250)
  11. ^(tr. Le Blanc 1987:144)
  12. ^(tr. Le Blanc 1987:161-2)
  13. ^(Watson 1993:2:309, 312)
  14. ^(Ngoại thiên,tr. Visser 1913:73-4)
  15. ^(tr. Visser 1913:73)
  16. ^(tr. Visser 1913:70)
  17. ^(tr. Read 1934:9, "fossilized horns of theChalicotheriumsinense")
  18. ^(Tích thề/ "Sorrow for Troth Betrayed", cf.qingqiuThanh cầu"green horned-dragon" above, tr. Hawkes 1985:240)
  19. ^(Xa thệ,tr. Hawkes 1985:290)
  20. ^(Đi xa,tr. Hawkes 1985:198)
  21. ^(MacKenzie 1923:54)
  22. ^(Li and Luckert 1994:104)
  • Carr, Michael (1990)."Chinese Dragon Names"(PDF).Linguistics of the Tibeto-Burman Area.13(2): 87–189.
  • Coblin, W. South (1986).A Sinologist's Handlist of Sino-Tibetan Lexical Comparisons.Nettetal.
  • The Songs of the South: An Anthology of Ancient Chinese Poems by Qu Yuan and Other Poets.Translated by Hawkes, David. Penguin. 1985.
  • Karlgren, Bernhard (1957).Grammata Serica Recensa.Museum of Far Eastern Antiquities.
  • Le Blanc, Charles (1985).Huai-nan Tzu: Philosophical Synthesis in Early Han Thought: The Idea of Resonance (Kan-Ying) With a Translation and Analysis of Chapter Six.Hong Kong University Press.
  • Li, Shu gian g; Luckert, Karl W. (1994).Mythology and Folklore of the Hui, a Muslim Chinese People.SUNY Press.
  • Mackenzie, Donald A. (1923).Myths of China and Japan.Gresham.
  • Read, Bernard E. (1934). "Chinese Materia Medica VII; Dragons and Snakes".Peking Natural History Bulletin.8(4): 279–362.
  • Schuessler, Axel (2007).ABC Etymological Dictionary of Old Chinese.University of Hawaii Press.
  • Visser, Marinus Willern de (1913).The Dragon in China and Japan.J. Müller. Archived fromthe originalon October 26, 2008.
  • Sima Qian (1993).Records of the Grand Historian, by Sima Qian.Translated by Watson, Burton. Columbia University Press.
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