蝴蝶

Chinese

			butterfly
simp. and trad. (蝴蝶)		蝴	蝶
variant forms		胡蝶 obsolete

蝴蝶

Etymology

From Middle Chinese *ɦuo dep (first syllable unstressed), from Old Chinese *ɡaː l'eːb, derived from a proto-form of *kʰleːp ~ *ɦleːp, a prefixed form of the root *lep (“butterfly”), which was also the source of

• Tibetan ཕྱེ་མ་ལེབ (phye ma leb, “butterfly”) and
• Burmese လိပ်ပြာ (lippra, “butterfly”).

Variants of 胡蝶 / 蝴蝶, representing different developments from the proto-form, including disyllabification, fricativisation of the voiceless initial, etc.:

蝶 (OC *l'eːb), 蜨 (OC *seːb), 胡蜨 / 蝴蜨 (OC *ɡaː seːb), 蛺蝶 (OC *keːb l'eːb), 蛺蜨 (OC *keːb seːb).

There are different theories regarding the original meaning of the root *lep:

• Proto-Sino-Tibetan *ljap (“thin; flat; flat object”), represented by the phonetic element 枼 (OC *leb) in Chinese. Related to 葉 (OC *hljeb, *leb, “leaf”), 牒 (OC *l'eːb, “official document < plank”), Tibetan ལེབ་ལེབ (leb leb, “flat; level”), ལེབ་མོ (leb mo, “flat”) and Burmese လှပ် (hlap, “thin”). See 枼 for more.
• Proto-Sino-Tibetan *s-ljap (“lightning; flash; glitter”) (Matisoff, 2003), whence also 燁 (OC *ɢʷab, *ɢʷɯb, “gleaming”), 熠 (OC *ɢrub, *lub, “flashing”) and Burmese လျှပ် (hlyap, “(of light) to strike; to shine; lightning”). Compare Malay kerlap (“to flash; to glisten, as the wings of flying butterflies”).

Alternatively, Sun (1999) proposes that 蝴蝶 is a fission reduplication of two cognate bases, the former being more likely:

• 挾 (OC *ɡeːb, “to press from both sides; to carry something under one's arms”), alluding to the flapping motion of the butterfly's wings, or
• 夾 (OC *kreːb, “pincers”), from the way the butterfly holds its wings erect when not flying.

Compare Proto-Austronesian *kali-, *qali- (prefix for words with a sensitive reference to the spirit world, including “butterfly”).

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): húdié

  (Zhuyin): ㄏㄨˊ ㄉㄧㄝˊ

• Cantonese (Jyutping): wu⁴ dip^6-2, wu⁴ dip⁶
• Gan (Wiktionary): fu⁴ tiet
• Hakka (Meixian, Guangdong): fu² tiab⁶
• Jin (Wiktionary): hu¹ dieh⁵
• Min Dong (BUC): hù-diĕk
• Min Nan (POJ): ô͘-tia̍p / hô͘-tia̍p
• Wu (Wiktionary): hhu diq (T3)
• Xiang (Wiktionary): fu² tie⁶

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• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Pinyin: húdié
    • Zhuyin: ㄏㄨˊ ㄉㄧㄝˊ
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: hwudye
    • Tongyong Pinyin: húdié
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /xu³⁵ tjɛ³⁵/
      
  • (Standard Chinese, erhua-ed) (蝴蝶兒／蝴蝶儿)⁺
    • Pinyin: húdiér
    • Zhuyin: ㄏㄨˊ ㄉㄧㄝˊㄦ
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: hwudyel
    • Tongyong Pinyin: húdiér
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /xu³⁵ tjɛɻ³⁵/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou)⁺
    • Jyutping: wu⁴ dip^6-2, wu⁴ dip⁶
    • Yale: wùh díp, wùh dihp
    • Cantonese Pinyin: wu⁴ dip^9-2, wu⁴ dip⁹
    • Guangdong Romanization: wu⁴ dib², wu⁴ dib⁶
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /wuː²¹ tiːp̚²⁻³⁵/, /wuː²¹ tiːp̚²/
• Gan
  • (Nanchang)
    • Wiktionary: fu⁴ tiet
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /fu³⁵ tʰiɛt̚²/
• Hakka
  • (Meixian)
    • Guangdong: fu² tiab⁶
    • Sinological IPA: /fu¹¹ tʰiap̚⁵/
• Jin
  • (Taiyuan)⁺
    • Wiktionary: hu¹ dieh⁵
    • Sinological IPA (old-style): /xu¹¹ tiəʔ⁵⁴/
• Min Dong
  • (Fuzhou)
    • Bàng-uâ-cê: hù-diĕk
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /hu⁵³⁻³³ ^(t-)lieʔ⁵/
• Min Nan
  • (Hokkien: Xiamen, Quanzhou, Zhangzhou, Taipei, Kaohsiung, Yilan, Hsinchu)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: ô͘-tia̍p
    • Tâi-lô: ôo-tia̍p
    • Phofsit Daibuun: o'diap
    • IPA (Zhangzhou): /ɔ¹³⁻²² tiap̚¹²¹/
    • IPA (Xiamen): /ɔ²⁴⁻²² tiap̚⁴/
    • IPA (Kaohsiung): /ɔ²³⁻³³ tiap̚⁴/
    • IPA (Quanzhou): /ɔ²⁴⁻²² tiap̚²⁴/
    • IPA (Taipei): /ɔ²⁴⁻¹¹ tiap̚⁴/
  • (Hokkien: variant in Taiwan)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: hô͘-tia̍p
    • Tâi-lô: hôo-tia̍p
    • Phofsit Daibuun: ho'diap
    • IPA (Kaohsiung): /hɔ²³⁻³³ tiap̚⁴/
    • IPA (Taipei): /hɔ²⁴⁻¹¹ tiap̚⁴/
• Wu
  • (Shanghainese)
    • Wiktionary: hhu diq (T3)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ɦv̩ʷ²² d̻i̯ɪʔ⁴⁴/
• Xiang
  • (Changsha)
    • Wiktionary: fu² tie⁶
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /ɸu¹³ tʰie̞²⁴/

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• Middle Chinese: /ɦuo  dep̚/▼

Rime
Character	蝴	蝶
Reading #	1/1	2/2
Initial (聲)	匣 (33)	定 (7)
Final (韻)	模 (23)	怗 (158)
Tone (調)	Level (Ø)	Checked (Ø)
Openness (開合)	Open	Open
Division (等)	I	IV
Fanqie	戸吳切	徒協切
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/ɦuo/	/dep̚/
Pan Wuyun	/ɦuo/	/dep̚/
Shao Rongfen	/ɣo/	/dɛp̚/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/ɦɔ/	/dɛp̚/
Li Rong	/ɣo/	/dep̚/
Wang Li	/ɣu/	/diep̚/
Bernard Karlgren	/ɣuo/	/dʱiep̚/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	hú	dié

• Old Chinese▼

  (Zhengzhang): /*ɡaː  l'eːb/

Zhengzhang system (2003)
Character	蝴	蝶
Reading #	1/1	2/2
No.	4254	11580
Phonetic component	古	世
Rime group	魚	盍
Rime subdivision	0	2
Corresponding MC rime	胡	牒
Old Chinese	/*ɡaː/	/*l'eːb/
Notes	胡後起分化字	見漢詩

Noun

蝴蝶

1. butterfly (Classifier: 隻／只)

   • 昔者莊周夢為胡蝶，栩栩然胡蝶也，自喻適志與！ [Classical Chinese, trad.]
     昔者庄周梦为胡蝶，栩栩然胡蝶也，自喻适志与！ [Classical Chinese, simp.]

     From: Zhuangzi, circa 3^rd – 2^nd centuries BCE

     Xī zhě Zhuāng Zhōu mèng wéi húdié, xǔxǔrán húdié yě, zìyù shìzhì yú! [Pinyin]

     Formerly, I, Zhuang Zhou, dreamt that I was a butterfly, a butterfly flying about, feeling that it was enjoying itself.

Synonyms

Derived terms

Derived terms from 蝴蝶

• 夢裡蝴蝶／梦里蝴蝶
• 撲蝴蝶／扑蝴蝶 (pū húdié)
• 木蝴蝶 (mùhúdié)
• 紙蝴蝶／纸蝴蝶
• 花蝴蝶 (huāhúdié)
• 藍蝴蝶／蓝蝴蝶
• 蝴蝶刀 (húdiédāo)
• 蝴蝶夢／蝴蝶梦 (húdiémèng)
• 蝴蝶效應／蝴蝶效应 (húdié xiàoyìng)
• 蝴蝶犬 (húdiéquǎn)
• 蝴蝶琴 (húdiéqín)

• 蝴蝶瓦 (húdiéwǎ)
• 蝴蝶穿花
• 蝴蝶粉
• 蝴蝶結／蝴蝶结 (húdiéjié)
• 蝴蝶花 (húdiéhuā)
• 蝴蝶蘭／蝴蝶兰
• 蝴蝶裝／蝴蝶装
• 蝴蝶酥 (húdiésū)
• 蝴蝶骨
• 鴛鴦蝴蝶／鸳鸯蝴蝶
• 鴛鴦蝴蝶派／鸳鸯蝴蝶派

Descendants

Sino-Xenic (胡蝶, 蝴蝶):

• → Japanese: 胡蝶 (こちょう) (kochō)
• → Korean: 호접 (胡蝶, hojeop)
• → Vietnamese: hồ điệp (胡蝶, 蝴蝶)

See also

• 蛾 (é, “moth”)
• 毛毛蟲／毛毛虫 (máomaochóng, “caterpillar”)

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Japanese

Kanji in this term
蝴	蝶
こ Hyōgaiji	ちょう Jinmeiyō
on’yomi

Noun

蝴蝶 (hiragana こちょう, rōmaji kochō, historical hiragana こてふ)

1. Alternative spelling of 胡蝶 (“butterfly”)