娘娘 (Niáng niáng) — (historical) imperial consort (empress or high-…

Definition

Honorific address for a high-ranking imperial consort in historical China; also used in folk religion for a female deity. Always refers to a specific titled woman, not a generic lady.

noun

(historical) imperial consort (empress or high-ranking concubine)(in folk religion) goddessfemale deity

Measure word · 位

Examples

，娘娘。
Zài qīng cháo, huáng dì de hòu gōng zhōng yǒu xǔ duō Niáng niáng.
In the Qing dynasty, the emperor's harem had many imperial consorts.
娘娘。
Hěn duō xìn tú qù miào lǐ bài Niáng niáng.
Many believers go to the temple to worship the goddess.
娘娘。
Zhè wèi Niáng niáng shì huáng dì zuì chǒng ài de fēi zi.
This imperial consort was the emperor's favorite concubine.

Origin

Reduplicated word

构词法gòucífǎ

重叠chóngdiéReduplication

A syllable said twice — for affection, for softness, or simply because that is how the word is said.

娘niángmother

The double 娘 gives a respectful, elevated title for female royalty or deities.

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.

女良娘

Meaning part形符xíngfú

女女nǚ

Sound part声符shēngfú

良

良liáng娘niáng

Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

娘 is built from 女 (woman) and 良, which supplies the sound.

Open 娘 →