名垂千古 (míng chuí qiān gǔ) — to go down in history, to be remembered for ages

Definition

A formal, literary idiom meaning 'to be remembered for ages' — reserved for legendary figures, heroic deeds, or great works. Much stronger and more elevated than everyday '流芳百世'.

idiom
to go down in historyto be remembered for ages

Examples

  • 名垂千古。
    Tā de yīng xióng shì jì bì jiāng míng chuí qiān gǔ.
    His heroic deeds will surely go down in history.
  • 名垂千古。
    Zhè wèi kē xué jiā de gòng xiàn yǐ míng chuí qiān gǔ.
    This scientist's contributions have already gone down in history.
  • 名垂千古。
    Yí bù míng chuí qiān gǔ de zuò pǐn xū yào shí jiān hé cái huá.
    A work that will go down in history requires time and talent.

Origin

Characters in this word

Two or more meaningful parts placed together so that their meanings combine into a new one.

名 puts 夕 (crescent moon) above 口 (mouth), showing a name spoken in the dark.

Open 名 →

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

垂 combines 𠂹 and 土 to draw flowers hanging down from a plant.

Open 垂 →

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
一一yīone, signifying a number
Sound part声符shēngfú
人
人rén千qiān
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

千 pairs 人, whose sound was similar, with 一, a number stroke; the extra line was explained as extension, and a thousand is a number reached by extending counting.

Open 千 →

An abstract idea shown by a mark or a diagram rather than by a picture of an object.

One reading of 古 sees a shield-like shape above an open mark, showing strength and firmness. Another sees a person spitting out bad-tasting food.

Open 古 →

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