General
Information is based on dictionaries and other sources. Pinyin readings reflect standard Mandarin usage; for some dialect alternative names it may be of little practical use, especially for South China. Many Korean glosses are highly tentative. Comments and corrections welcome.
The Otidae (or Otididae) are known as 鸨 in Chinese. Another name for the bustards is 鸿豹 (literally 'wild-goose leopard').
In China, the bustard was traditionally regarded as a sexually promiscuous bird and its name is found in some words describing old whores or lustful old women.
An example of this can be seen in the Journey to the West, a sixteenth-century Chinese novel (as translated by Arthur Waley in Monkey):
Monkey whisked out of the water, and changed himself into a freckled bustard (花鸨 ), standing all alone on the bank. Seeing that he had reached the lowest possible stage in transformation, for the freckled bustard is the lowest and most promiscuous of creatures, mating at hazard with any bird that comes its way, Erh-lang did not deign to close with him.
Species names
ABOUT THIS TABLE (Hover cursor to see) SCIENTIFIC & ENGLISH |
CHINESE |
EAST |
SOUTH | NORTH |
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| Otis | ||||||||
Latin |
English | Chinese |
Chinese (Taiwan) |
Other Ch |
Japanese |
Korean |
Vietnamese |
Mongolian |
Otis tarda |
Great bustard | 大鸨 (大鴇) 'large bustard' |
地鵏 (地鵏) 'ground bustard' (FS) 野雁 (野雁) 'field goose' (Japanese?) 独豹 (獨豹) 'solitary panther' 羊鵏 (羊鵏) 'sheep/goat bustard' (male) (FS) 鸡鵏 (雞鵏) 'fowl/chicken bustard' (female) (FS) 青鵏 (青鵏) 'green/blue black bustard' |
ノガン (野雁 ~ 鴇) no-gan 'field-goose' |
느시 neusi 'bustard' |
Хонин тоодог khoniŋ toodog 'sheep/goat bustard' Former official: Тоодог toodog 'bustard' |
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| Chlamydotis | ||||||||
Latin |
English | Chinese |
Chinese (Taiwan) |
Other Ch |
Japanese |
Korean |
Vietnamese |
Mongolian |
| Chlamydotis undulata Otis undulata |
Houbara bustard | 波斑鸨 (波斑鴇) 'wave-striped bustard' |
フサエリショウノガン (房襟小野雁 ~ 房襟小鴇) fusa-eri shō no-gan 'tuft-collared small field-goose' |
Жороо тоодгой joroo toodgoi 'ambling bustard (variant)' |
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| Tetrax | ||||||||
Latin |
English | Chinese |
Chinese (Taiwan) |
Other Ch |
Japanese |
Korean |
Vietnamese |
Mongolian |
| Tetrax tetrax Otis tetrax |
Little bustard | 小鸨 (小鴇) 'small bustard' |
地鸡子 (地雞子) 'ground fowl/chicken' (FS) |
ヒメノガン (姫野雁 ~ 姫鴇) hime no-gan 'princess field-goose' |
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