身毒
Chinese[edit]
| phonetic | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| trad. (身毒) | 身 | 毒 | |
| simp. #(身毒) | 身 | 毒 | |
Etymology[edit]
Transcription of the same Old Persian [script needed] (*Hinduka, “India”) (or its minor variants, such as 𐏃𐎡𐎯𐎢𐏁 (hinduš)) as 天竺 (Tiānzhú). It is the oldest of the Chinese names for India, and occurs in Shiji in connection with the mission of Zhang Qian to Daxia.
Using Middle Chinese reconstructions of the two characters in this word (ɕiɪn duok̚) gives the false impression that this is derived from the name of Sindhu (सिन्धु) – the name of the westernmost kingdom of India. Factors making this etymology unlikely include:
- Zhang Qian had no direct contact with India or with the Indians. He gathered the name from the people of Daxia which was a pure Iranian zone then under the occupation of Yuezhi;
- The choice of an alveolopalatal sibilant ɕ- for a clear dental sibilant s- in the original language; cf. known transcriptions of Sindhu: 新頭 新陶 辛頭 信度, all commencing with a dental sibilant; and
- The presence of a final -k in 身毒, as in 天竺.
The ancient Chinese writers have long suggested that shēn in this word had a different pronunciation. Yan Shigu in his commentary to the Hanshu says:
The variant of Late Old Chinese that Zhang Qian had used showed the dialectal development of Old Chinese 身 *n̥in > *χin ~ hin, explaining the choice of 身 (shēn). This is perhaps comparable to the case of 天 in 天竺 (“India”), also a dialectal Old Chinese variant pronunciation. Modern dictionaries variably designate the proper pronunciation of this word in modern Beijing Mandarin as Juāndú, Yuándú, Yuāndú, but rarely Shēndú as would be pronounced by an unknowledgeable native.
Pronunciation[edit]
Proper noun[edit]
身毒
Synonyms[edit]
Related terms[edit]
- 天竺 (Tiānzhú)
Descendants[edit]
Japanese[edit]
| Kanji in this term | |
|---|---|
| 身 | 毒 |
| しん Grade: 3 |
どく Grade: 5 |
| on’yomi | |
Etymology[edit]
From Middle Chinese 身毒 (MC syin dowk).
Pronunciation[edit]
Proper noun[edit]
See also[edit]
- Chinese terms derived from Old Persian
- Mandarin terms with usage examples
- Mandarin terms with multiple pronunciations
- Middle Chinese lemmas
- Chinese lemmas
- Mandarin lemmas
- Cantonese lemmas
- Chinese proper nouns
- Mandarin proper nouns
- Cantonese proper nouns
- Chinese terms with IPA pronunciation
- Chinese literary terms
- Chinese terms with obsolete senses
- Japanese terms spelled with 身 read as しん
- Japanese terms spelled with 毒 read as どく
- Japanese terms read with on'yomi
- Japanese terms derived from Middle Chinese
- Japanese terms with IPA pronunciation
- Japanese lemmas
- Japanese proper nouns
- Japanese terms spelled with third grade kanji
- Japanese terms spelled with fifth grade kanji
- Japanese terms written with two Han script characters
- Japanese terms with rare senses
- Japanese terms with obsolete senses