Wu
English
Etymology 1
From Mandarin 吳/吴 (Wú). Doublet of O.
Proper noun
Wu
- (historical) Suzhou, a city in southern Jiangsu province in China, whence:
- (historical) A county of imperial and Republican China around Suzhou.
- (historical) A commandery of imperial China around Suzhou.
- A historic and cultural region of China around the mouth of the Yangtze River, whence:
- The family of Chinese languages spoken in that region, including Shanghainese and Suzhounese, the second-most spoken family after Mandarin.
- (historical) The kingdom ruled by the Ji family from Wuxi and then Suzhou during the Spring and Autumn period of China's Zhou dynasty.
- A common surname from Chinese:
- (historical) The kingdom ruled by the Sun family from Ezhou and Nanjing during the Three Kingdoms interregnum following China's Han dynasty.
- 1977, Chiang, Yee, “Kuei-lin and Yang-shuo”, in China Revisited, New York: W. W. Norton & Company, →ISBN, LCCN 77-22587, OCLC 473570033, page 155:
- I deeply regretted having to miss seeing Hsing-ping, a very old town built by the ruler of the Wu Kingdom in the Three Kingdoms period of the third century.
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- (historical) The kingdom ruled by Li Zitong from Yangzhou and Hangzhou during the interregnum following China's Sui dynasty.
- (historical) The kingdom ruled by the Yang family from Yangzhou during the Ten Kingdoms interregnum following China's Tang dynasty.
- (historical) The kingdom ruled by the Qian family from Hangzhou and Shaoxing during the Ten Kingdoms interregnum following China's Tang dynasty.
Synonyms
- Gusu, Helu City, Suzhou (Suzhou)
- Wuxian, Wuhsien, Wu-hsien (county)
- Wujun, Wu-chun (commandery)
- Wu Chinese, Jiangnan, Wuyue, Jiangzhe (language family)
- Gou Wu, Gouwu, Gong Wu, Gongwu (Spring & Autumn Period realm)
- Dong Wu, Dongwu, Eastern Wu, Sun Wu (Three Kingdoms realm)
- Huainan, Hongnong, Southern Wu, Yang Wu (Ten Kingdoms realm ruled from Yangzhou)
- Wuyue (Ten Kingdoms realm ruled from Hangzhou)
- Woo (surname)
Translations
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See also
- Suzhounese
- ISO 639-3 code wuu (SIL)
- Ethnologue entry for Wu, wuu
- Wiktionary’s coverage of Wu terms
Etymology 2
From the Pinyin romanization of the Mandarin 武 (Wǔ, “war, warrior, warlike”).
Proper noun
Wu
- A surname from Chinese.
- (historical) An epithet of numerous kings and emperors in Chinese history who were honored with variants of the posthumous nameWuwang or Wudi.
Usage notes
Although the Chinese usage of Wu as a posthumous name is adjectival and should properly be translated—as, e.g., "the Martial Emperor of the Han dynasty"—or treated as an epithet in a similar manner to emperors called after their era names—as, e.g., "the Hongwu Emperor of the Ming dynasty"—it is much more common to encounter them in English sources treated as proper names—as, e.g., "Emperor Wu of the Han dynasty"—despite the Chinese meaning nothing of the sort.
Synonyms
- Woo (surname)
- Mo (surname)
- martial, war-like, etc. (royal epithet)
Etymology 3
From the Pinyin romanization of various Mandarin surnames: 伍 (Wǔ), 巫 (Wū), 仵 (Wǔ), 烏/乌 (Wū), 鄔/邬 (Wū).
Proper noun
Wu
- A surname from Chinese.
Synonyms
- Woo
Etymology 4
From Cantonese 胡 (wu4). Doublet of Hu.
Proper noun
Wu
- A surname from Chinese.
Synonyms
- Woo
Anagrams
- UW
Indonesian
Alternative forms
- (Teochew, Hokkien):
- Aw
- Auw
- Hu
- Hoo
Etymology
From Cantonese 胡 (Hú).
Proper noun
Wu
- a surname from Cantonese
Tagalog
Etymology
Borrowed from Mandarin 吳/吴 (Wú) and 伍 (Wǔ).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈwu/, [ˈwu]
Proper noun
Wu (Baybayin spelling ᜏᜓ)
- a surname from Mandarin of Chinese origin
Related terms
- Cinco
- Go
- Goh
- Gozon
- Ngo