Zosteropidae / メジロ科 (Me-jiro ka)

绣眼鸟科 Xiù-yǎn-niǎo kē * 繡眼科 Xiù-yǎn kē * 동박새과 Dong-bak-sae-gwa

General names

Information is based on dictionaries and other sources. Species list may not be current. Comments and corrections welcome.

The Japanese name for the white-eye is メジロ me-jiro, consisting of the words me (目) meaning 'eye' and shiro (白) meaning 'white'. Shiro here changes to a voiced vowel, as -jiro, when it forms the second part of a compound word. The characters for me-jiro are 目白 (sometimes 眼白).

The genus Apalopteron is known as the メグロ me-guro meaning 'black eye', written 目黒 ('eye + black') in Chinese characters. This is analogous to the name of the whiteeyes, メジロ me-jiro 'eye + white'.

Zosterops japonica is quite familiar to the Japanese. Its name occurs in the phrase 目白押し mejiro-oshi meaning 'jostling' or 'milling', from its habit of of gathering on branches in jostling clusters.

Species names

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SCIENTIFIC & WESTERN
JAPANESE
CHINESE
KOREAN
Latin
Eng, Fr, Ger, Ru
Japanese
Other J
Chinese
Chinese (Taiwan)
Other Ch
Korean
Zosterops              
Zosterops erythropleurus
Zosterops erythropleura
link to photo		 Chestnut-flanked white-eye
Red-flanked white-eye
Zostérops à flancs marron
Rostflanken-Brillenvogel
Буробокая белоглазка		 チョウセンメジロ
(朝鮮目白)
Chōsen me-jiro
'Korean white-eye' (Wikipedia)		   红胁绣眼鸟 (紅脇繡眼鳥)
hóng-xié xiù-yǎn-niǎo
'red-ribbed embroidered eye bird'		   红胁粉眼 (紅脇粉眼)
hóng-xié fěn-yǎn
'red-ribbed embroidered eye'
粉眼
fěn-yǎnr
'powder eye'
北粉眼
běi fěn-yǎnr
'northern powder eye' (cf Z. japonica below)
绣眼儿 (繡眼兒)
xiù-yǎnr
'embroidered eye'
白眼儿 (白眼兒)
bái-yǎnr
'white eye'
红胁粉眼 (紅脇粉眼)
hóng-xié fěn-yǎnr
'red-ribbed powder eye'
紫燕儿 (紫燕兒)
zǐ-yànr
'purple swallow'		 한국동박새
hanguk-dong-bak-sae
'Korean dong bak bird (=tit)'
Zosterops japonicus
Zosterops japonica		 Japanese white-eye
Dark green white-eye
Zostérops du Japon
Japanbrillenvogel
Японская белоглазка		 メジロ
(目白)
me-jiro
'white-eye'		   暗绿绣眼鸟 (暗綠繡眼鳥)
àn-lǜ xiù-yǎn-niǎo
'dark green embroidered eye bird'		 綠繡眼
lǜ xiù-yǎn
'green embroidered eye'		 粉眼儿 (粉眼兒)
fěn-yǎnr
'powder eye' (Beijing)
绣眼鸟 (繡眼鳥)
xiù-yǎn-niǎo
'embroidered eye bird'
绣眼儿 (繡眼兒)
xiù-yǎnr
'embroidered eye'
白眼儿 (白眼兒)
bái-yǎnr
'white eye'
白目眶
bái-mù kuàng
'white eye socket'
白日眶
bái-rì kuàng
'white day eye socket' (mistaken?)
粉燕儿 (粉燕兒)
fěn-yànr
'powder swallow'
南粉眼
nán fěn-yǎnr
'southern powder eye' (cf Z. erythropleura above)
相思
xiāng-sī
'mutual thought' (7) cf. Leiothrix 		동박새
dong-bak-sae
'dong bak bird (=tit)'
Apalopteron              
Apalopteron familiare
link to photo		 Bonin honeyeater
Bonin white-eye
Bonin Island honeyeater
Zostérops des Bonin
Boninhonigfresser
Бонинский медосос		 メグロ
(目黒)
me-guro
'black-eye'		   笠原吸蜜鸟 (笠原吸蜜鳥)
Lìyuán xī-mì-niǎo
'Ogasawara suck-honey-bird'		      
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(Site uses UK spelling, e.g., "grey-coloured")