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 cormorants are known as 鸬鹚 , or sometimes 鸬鸶 . Without qualification, 鸬鹚 normally refers to the Great Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo. Note that 鵜, the character used for ウ u 'cormorant' in Japanese, is the first character in the Chinese word for pelican, 鹈鹕 .
A popular name for P. carbo is 鱼鹰 'fish hawk' (also a name for the osprey). The cormorants also have a number of popular names referring to the crows.
The Orient has a long tradition of using the cormorant for fishing, a practice that is sadly dying out. In Chinese, cormorant fishing is colloquially known as 放鹰 'to release the hawk', mainly using P. carbo. Chinese fishermen refer to their birds as 鹰 'hawk', related to the popular name 鱼鹰 'fish hawk'. The expression 放鸦 'release the crow' is also used, based on the popular name 水老鸦 'water crow'.
Species names
SCIENTIFIC & ENGLISH |
CHINESE |
EAST |
SOUTH | NORTH |
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| Phalacrocorax | ||||||||
Latin |
English | Chinese |
Chinese (Taiwan) |
Other Ch |
Japanese |
Korean |
Vietnamese |
Mongolian |
| Phalacrocorax niger Halietor niger  |
Little cormorant Javanese cormorant Pygmy cormorant | 黑颈鸬鹚 (黑頸鸕鶿) 'black-necked cormorant' |
小鸬鹚 (小鸕鶿) 'small cormorant' (FS) |
アジアコビトウ (アジア小人鵜) ajia kobito-u 'Asian dwarf cormorant' |
Chim Cốc đen 'black cormorant (bird)' |
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| Phalacrocorax carbo |
Great cormorant Cormorant Common cormorant | 普通鸬鹚 (普通鸕鶿) 'common cormorant' (1, 2, 3, 4) 鸬鹚 (鸕鶿) 'cormorant' (5. Alternative in 1) |
(鸬鹚) 鸕鶿 'cormorant' |
鱼鹰 (魚鷹) 'fish hawk' (FS) (also Osprey) 墨鸦 (墨鴉) 'black-ink crow' 水老鸦 (水老鴉) 'water crow' 水老鸹 (水老鴰) 'water crow' (northern) (FS) 鱼老鸹 (魚老鴰) 'fish crow' (FS) 海鹈 (海鵜) 'sea pelican' (FS) 乌鬼 (烏鬼) 'dark demon' (southern) (FS) 黑鱼郎 (黑魚郎) 'black fisherman' (FS) 鷧 (鷧) 'cormorant' (Materia Medica) (FS) |
カワウ (河鵜) kawa-u 'river cormorant' |
민물가마우지 minmul-gamauji 'freshwater cormorant' |
Chim Cốc đế 'king cormorant (bird)' |
Тураг гогой turag gogoi 'large cormorant' |
| Phalacrocorax capillatus Phalacrocorax filamentosus (esp. in Japan) |
Japanese cormorant Temminck's cormorant | 绿背鸬鹚 (綠背鸕鶿) 'green back cormorant' (2, 4) 暗绿背鸬鹚 (暗綠背鸕鶿) 'dark green back cormorant' (1, 3, 5) |
(丹氏鸬鹚) 丹氏鸕鶿 'Mr Dan's cormorant' |
斑头鸬鹚 (班頭鸕鶿) 'stripe-headed cormorant' (6, 7) 特明氏鸬鹚 (特明氏鸕鶿) 'Mr Teming's cormorant' (FS) |
ウミウ (海鵜) umi-u 'sea cormorant' |
가마우지 gamauji 'cormorant' |
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| Phalacrocorax pelagicus Leucocarbo pelagicus |
Pelagic cormorant Sea cormorant | 海鸬鹚 (海鸕鶿) 'sea cormorant' |
(海鸬鹚) 海鸕鶿 'sea cormorant' |
乌鹈 (烏鵜) 'dark pelican' (dict) (FS) |
ヒメウ (姫鵜) hime-u 'princess cormorant' |
쇠가마우지 soe-gamauji 'small cormorant'  Taxonomy |
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| Phalacrocorax urile |
Red-faced shag Red-faced cormorant | 红脸鸬鹚 (紅臉鸕鶿) 'red-faced cormorant' |
水老鸦 (水老鴉) 'water crow' (FS) |
チシマウガラス (千島鵜烏) chishima u-garasu 'Kurile cormorant-crow' |
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