General names
Information is based on dictionaries and other sources. Comments and corrections welcome.
The general word for 'sparrow' is 麻雀 , where the characters literally mean 'flaxen sparrow'. In its unmodified form, this refers to Passer montanus.
Traditionally, the word 黄雀 'yellow sparrow' referred to the sparrow (still preserved in Japanese as 黄雀 kōjaku). In Modern Chinese, ornithologists have assigned the term 黄雀 to the siskin (Carduelis spinus).
The character 雀 , originally meaning 'sparrow', or other small passerine species (such as finches), is now one of the most widely used characters in bird names. The family 雀科
què kē refers not to the sparrows but to the finches (Fringillidae). In some cases, notably that of the Green peacock, 雀 is used for a very unpasserine type of bird.
One of the alternative Chinese names for the Tree Sparrow, 王母使者 ('emissary of the queen mother') relates to a story from ancient China. Yang Bao was a man of great moral integrity. In his childhood, he found an injured 'yellow sparrow' (黄雀 ) which he rescued and nursed back to health. One night a boy dressed in yellow appeared to Yang Bao saying he was a servant of the Queen Mother of the West. While on a mission to the fairy land in the east he had been attacked by a bird of prey and owed his life to Yang Bao. The boy gave Yang Bao four rings, guaranteeing that four generations of his family would rise to high rank.
Species names
ABOUT THIS TABLE (Hover cursor to see) SCIENTIFIC & ENGLISH |
CHINESE |
JAPANESE |
OTHER |
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| Passer | ||||||||
Latin |
English |
Chinese (Taiwan) |
Chinese (Mainland) |
Other Ch |
Japanese |
Other J |
Korean |
Vietnamese |
Passer rutilans |
Russet sparrow Cinnamon sparrow Ruddy sparrow |
山麻雀 (山麻雀) 'mountain sparrow' |
(山麻雀) 山麻雀 'mountain sparrow' |
黄雀 (黃雀) 'yellow sparrow' 紅雀 (红雀) 'red sparrow' 桂色雀 (桂色雀) 'cinnamon coloured sparrow' 赭麻雀 (赭麻雀) 'brownish sparrow' 山只只 (山只只) 'mountain zhi zhi' |
ニュウナイスズメ (入内雀) nyūnai suzume 'enter inside sparrow' (the characters for nyūnai refer to conferral of 'inner' court rank in ancient Japan, a step up from provincial 'outer' rank) |
섬참새 seom-cham-sae 'island sparrow bird' |
Chim Sẻ hung 'reddish sparrow (bird)' |
| Passer montanus |
Eurasian tree sparrow Tree sparrow |
麻雀 (麻雀) 'sparrow' |
(麻雀) 麻雀 'sparrow' or (树麻雀) 树麻雀 'tree sparrow' (Alternative in 1, 3) |
麻雀兒 (麻雀儿) 'sparrow' 家雀 (家雀) 'house sparrow' 家雀兒 (家雀儿) 'house sparrow' (dialect) 琉麻雀 (琉麻雀) 'glazed sparrow' 老家賊 (老家贼) 'old house thief' (dialect) 老家子 (老家子) 'old house fellow' 老雀子 (老雀子) 'old sparrow' 王母使者 (王母使者) 'emissary of the queen mother' (see note) 賓雀 (宾雀) 'guest sparrow' 瓦雀 (瓦雀) 'tile sparrow' 只只 (只只) 'zhi zhi' 厝鸟 (厝鸟) 'house-bird' (dialect) |
スズメ (雀) suzume 'sparrow' |
コウジャク 黄雀 kōjaku 'yellow sparrow' A wealth of popular names (see Hiraizumi) |
참새 cham-sae 'sparrow bird' |
Chim Sẻ 'sparrow (bird)' |
