古人

Chinese

		ancient; old	man; person; people
simp. and trad. (古人)		古	人

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): gǔrén

  (Zhuyin): ㄍㄨˇ ㄖㄣˊ

• Cantonese (Jyutping): gu² jan⁴
• Hakka (Sixian, PFS): kú-ngìn
• Southern Min (Hokkien, POJ): kó͘-lîn / kó͘-jîn

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• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: gǔrén
    • Zhuyin: ㄍㄨˇ ㄖㄣˊ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: gǔrén
    • Wade–Giles: ku³-jên²
    • Yale: gǔ-rén
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: guuren
    • Palladius: гужэнь (gužɛnʹ)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ku²¹⁴⁻²¹ ʐən³⁵/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: gu² jan⁴
    • Yale: gú yàhn
    • Cantonese Pinyin: gu² jan⁴
    • Guangdong Romanization: gu² yen⁴
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /kuː³⁵ jɐn²¹/
• Hakka
  • (Sixian, incl. Miaoli and Meinong)
    • Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: kú-ngìn
    • Hakka Romanization System: gu` nginˇ
    • Hagfa Pinyim: gu³ ngin²
    • Sinological IPA: /ku³¹ ŋin¹¹/
• Southern Min
  • (Hokkien: Xiamen, Quanzhou, Taipei)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: kó͘-lîn
    • Tâi-lô: kóo-lîn
    • Phofsit Daibuun: kofliin
    • IPA (Quanzhou): /kɔ⁵⁵⁴⁻²⁴ lin²⁴/
    • IPA (Xiamen, Taipei): /kɔ⁵³⁻⁴⁴ lin²⁴/
  • (Hokkien: Zhangzhou, Kaohsiung)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: kó͘-jîn
    • Tâi-lô: kóo-jîn
    • Phofsit Daibuun: kofjiin
    • IPA (Zhangzhou): /kɔ⁵³⁻⁴⁴ d͡zin¹³/
    • IPA (Kaohsiung): /kɔ⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ zin²³/

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• Middle Chinese: kuX nyin

Rime
Character	古	人
Reading #	1/1	1/1
Initial (聲)	見 (28)	日 (38)
Final (韻)	模 (23)	眞 (43)
Tone (調)	Rising (X)	Level (Ø)
Openness (開合)	Open	Open
Division (等)	I	III
Fanqie	公戸切	如鄰切
Baxter	kuX	nyin
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/kuoX/	/ȵiɪn/
Pan Wuyun	/kuoX/	/ȵin/
Shao Rongfen	/koX/	/ȵʑjen/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/kɔX/	/ȵin/
Li Rong	/koX/	/ȵiĕn/
Wang Li	/kuX/	/ȵʑĭĕn/
Bernard Karlgren	/kuoX/	/ȵʑi̯ĕn/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	gǔ	rén
Expected Cantonese Reflex	gu2	jan4

• Old Chinese

  (Baxter–Sagart): /*kˤaʔ  ni[ŋ]/

  (Zhengzhang): /*kaːʔ  njin/

Baxter–Sagart system 1.1 (2014)
Character	古	人
Reading #	1/1	1/1
Modern Beijing (Pinyin)	gǔ	rén
Middle Chinese	‹ kuX ›	‹ nyin ›
Old Chinese	/*kˁaʔ/	/*ni[ŋ]/
English	ancient	(other) person
Notes for Old Chinese notations in the Baxter–Sagart system: * Parentheses "()" indicate uncertain presence; * Square brackets "[]" indicate uncertain identity, e.g. *[t] as coda may in fact be *-t or *-p; * Angle brackets "<>" indicate infix; * Hyphen "-" indicates morpheme boundary; * Period "." indicates syllable boundary.

Zhengzhang system (2003)
Character	古	人
Reading #	1/1	1/1
No.	4219	10800
Phonetic component	古	人
Rime group	魚	眞
Rime subdivision	0	1
Corresponding MC rime	古	仁
Old Chinese	/*kaːʔ/	/*njin/

Noun

古人

1. the ancients; people from ancient times; forefathers

   古人云  ―  gǔrén yún  ―  as the old saying goes

2. (anthropology) early man; Homo sapiens
3. (euphemistic) someone who has passed away

   • 李兄果是我八拜至交，指望再得相會，誰知已作古人？ [Written Vernacular Chinese, trad.]
     李兄果是我八拜至交，指望再得相会，谁知已作古人？ [Written Vernacular Chinese, simp.]

     From: 1628 CE, Ling Mengchu, Slapping the Table in Amazement I

     Lǐ xiōng guǒ shì wǒ bābài zhìjiāo, zhǐwàng zài dé xiānghuì, shéi zhī yǐ zuò gǔrén? [Pinyin]

     Brother Li was indeed my dearest friend. I had hoped to meet him again, but who would have known that he has passed away?

   • 今檢點書篋，忽得此幅，因思馮實菴給諫已歸老，錫山杜畟山侍御已作古人，程也園考功以憂歸里，盛孟巖侍御出守同州，錢裴山祠部督學粵西，昨任滿囘京，復入樞庭。 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     今检点书箧，忽得此幅，因思冯实庵给谏已归老，锡山杜畟山侍御已作古人，程也园考功以忧归里，盛孟岩侍御出守同州，钱裴山祠部督学粤西，昨任满回京，复入枢庭。 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: 18th century, 裘行簡, 《樞垣記略·題舊存便面》

     Jīn jiǎndiǎn shūqiè, hū dé cǐ fú, yīn sī Féng Shíyǎn gěijiàn yǐ guīlǎo, Xīshān Dù Cèshān shìyù yǐ zuò gǔrén, Chéng Yěyuán kǎogōng yǐ yōu guīlǐ, Shèng Mèngyán shìyù chūshǒu Tóngzhōu, Qián Péishān cíbù dūxué Yuèxī, zuó rènmǎn huí jīng, fù rù shūtíng. [Pinyin]

     Today, I examined my bookcase and suddenly found this piece; thus I thought of Supervising Censor Feng Shiyan, who has returned to his hometown for retirement; Attendant Censor Du Ceshan from Xishan, who has passed away; Evaluations Officer Cheng Yeyuan, who has returned to his hometown in sorrow; Attendant Censor Sheng Mengyan, who has been sent to govern Tong Prefecture; Minister of Rites Qian Peishan, who has supervised education in western Guangdong, finished his term and returned to the capital to rejoin the court.

   • 汪原放君已經成了古人了，他的標點和校正小說，雖然不免小謬誤，但大體是有功於作者和讀者的。 [MSC, trad.]
     汪原放君已经成了古人了，他的标点和校正小说，虽然不免小谬误，但大体是有功于作者和读者的。 [MSC, simp.]

     From: 1924 January 28, 風聲 (fēngshēng) (Fengsheng), 望勿「紏正」, in 《晨報副鐫》, issue 18, page 4

     Wāng Yuánfàng jūn yǐjīng chéng le gǔrén le, tā de biāodiǎn hé jiàozhèng xiǎoshuō, suīrán bùmiǎn xiǎo miùwù, dàn dàtǐ shì yǒugōng yú zuòzhě hé dúzhě de. [Pinyin]

     Mr. Wang Yuanfang has passed away. On the most part, the novels that he had punctuated and proofread, though there would naturally be small errors, do a great service to authors and readers.

Synonyms

• (the ancients):

• 先人 (xiānrén)
• 先民 (xiānmín) (literary)
• 前人 (qiánrén)
• 古代人 (gǔdàirén)
• 古者 (gǔzhě) (literary)

 

Descendants

Sino-Xenic (古人):

• → Japanese: 古(こ)人(じん) (kojin)
• → Korean: 고인(古人) (goin)

Japanese

Etymology 1

Kanji in this term
古	人
こ Grade: 2	じん Grade: 1
on’yomi

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) こ​じん [kóꜜjìǹ] (Atamadaka – [1])
• IPA^(key): [ko̞ʑĩɴ]

Noun

古(こ)人(じん) • (kojin) 

1. a person from long ago

Etymology 2

Kanji in this term
古	人
ふる Grade: 2	ひと Grade: 1
kun’yomi

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ɸɯ̟ᵝɾɯ̟ᵝçito̞]

Noun

古(ふる)人(ひと) • (furuhito) 

1. a person from long ago
2. old person

Etymology 3

Kanji in this term
古	人
ふる Grade: 2	ひと > びと Grade: 1
kun’yomi

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ɸɯ̟ᵝɾɯ̟ᵝbʲito̞]

Noun

古(ふる)人(びと) • (furubito) 

1. a person from long ago
2. old person

Etymology 4

Kanji in this term
古	人
いにしえ Grade: 2	ひと > びと Grade: 1
kun’yomi

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [iɲ̟iɕie̞bʲito̞]

Noun

古(いにしえ)人(びと) • (inishiebito) ^{←いにしへびと (inisifebito)?}

1. old acquaintance

See also

• 旧人

Korean

Hanja in this term
古	人

Noun

古人 • (goin) (hangeul 고인)

1. Hanja form^? of 고인 (“a person from long ago”).