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天女 (tiān nǚ) — celestial maiden; goddess; (Buddhism) deva or apsara

Definition

A heavenly female being in Buddhist and East Asian mythology — usually a beautiful, ethereal maiden who can descend to the mortal world. Often appears in classical art, murals, and cave sculptures (as in the Dunhuang examples).

noun
celestial maidengoddess(Buddhism) deva or apsara
Measure word · 个

Examples

  • 天女，。
    Bì huà shàng de tiān nǚ yī dài piāo piāo, shén tài ān xiáng.
    The celestial maiden on the mural has flowing ribbons and a serene expression.
  • 天女。
    Zhè ge chuán shuō jiǎng de shì tiān nǚ xià fán bāng zhù fán rén de gù shi.
    This legend tells the story of a heavenly maiden descending to the mortal world to help humans.
  • 煌天女。
    Dūn huáng shí kū lǐ yǒu xǔ duō tiān nǚ de diāo kè.
    There are many carvings of celestial maidens in the Dunhuang caves.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

天tiānheaven
女nǚwoman

天 “heaven” and 女 “woman” form a woman from heaven, a goddess.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
大大dà
Sound part声符shēngfú
丁
丁dīng天tiān
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The shape comes from a frontal standing man 大 with a head; 天 pairs 大 with 丁 for sound.

Open 天 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

女 shows a woman with folded arms, kneeling or standing. In the modern form the figure faces right, and the small enclosed part is what is left of one arm.

Open 女 →
Appears in
Mythology & Folklore

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