honorific title for officials' wives; respectful term for women
Tone colorsmāmámǎmàma
Meanings
1 sense · 3 examplesnoun
honorific title conferred on the wives or mothers of officials; respectful term for a woman
archaicHistorically a specific rank in the Chinese imperial hierarchy for women (命妇), particularly during the Ming and Qing dynasties for seventh-rank officials. Now largely archaic except in historical contexts or as a respectful address in some dialects.
Míng明
qīng清
shí时
qī期
，
qī七
pǐn品
zhī知
xiàn县
de的
mǔ母
qīn亲
kě可
bèi被
chì敕
fēng封
wéi为
rú孺
rén人
。
During the Ming and Qing dynasties, the mother of a seventh-rank county magistrate could be conferred the title of Ruren.
Xiāng乡
qīn亲
men们
zūn尊
chēng称
zhè这
wèi位
nián年
zhǎng长
de的
fù妇
rén人
wéi为
rú孺
rén人
。
The villagers respectfully addressed this elderly woman as Ruren.
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Gǔ古
dài代
mìng命
fù妇
de的
fēng封
hào号
yǒu有
rú孺
rén人
、
gōng恭
rén人
、
yí宜
rén人
děng等
。
The honorary titles for noblewomen in ancient times included Ruren, Gongren, Yiren, and others.