龙舞 (lóng wǔ) — dragon dance (traditional Chinese performance)

Definition

Traditional Chinese performance where dancers move a long dragon figure on poles, especially at festivals like Chinese New Year. More of a cultural/ceremonial event than a stage dance.

noun
dragon dance (traditional Chinese performance)

Examples

  • ，龙舞。
    Chūn jié shí, jiē shàng huì yǒu jīng cǎi de lóng wǔ biǎo yǎn.
    During the Spring Festival, there will be wonderful dragon dance performances on the streets.
  • 龙舞，。
    Tā cóng xiǎo xué xí lóng wǔ, yǐ jīng liàn le shí nián.
    He has been learning the dragon dance since childhood and has practiced for ten years.
  • 龙舞，。
    lóng wǔ Bù jǐn shì yì zhǒng yú lè, gèng shì yì zhǒng wén huà chuán chéng.
    The dragon dance is not only a form of entertainment but also a cultural heritage.

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.

龙lóngdragon
舞wǔdance

龙 (dragon) specifies the kind of 舞 (dance), meaning a dragon dance.

Characters in this word

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

This origin belongs to the traditional form 龍; 龙 is its simplified writing.

The traditional form 龍 originally drew a sacred creature with a large mouth and a snake-like body; the simplified 龙 is the form written here.

Open 龙 →

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
舛舛chuǎnsteps, feet in convergent direction
Sound part声符shēngfú
無
無wú舞wǔ
Same sound today

舞 combines 舛, showing feet in converging steps, with 無 above. 無 gave the sound and also preserved its older meaning of dancing, so the shape points to dancing.

Open 舞 →

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