百越 (Bǎiyuè): Baiyue

Meanings

1 Baiyue
2 ancient collective name for the Yue peoples of southern China

Characters

百

Examples

秦汉时期,百越分布在今天的浙江、福建、广东一带。

Qín Hàn shíqī, Bǎiyuè fēnbù zài jīntiān de Zhèjiāng, Fújiàn, Guǎngdōng yīdài.

In the Qin and Han dynasties, the Baiyue lived in what is now Zhejiang, Fujian, and Guangdong.

百越是古代南方民族的总称。

Bǎiyuè shì gǔdài nánfāng mínzú de zǒngchēng.

Baiyue is the collective name for the ancient southern peoples.

Tips

history

百 ('hundred') is figurative — 'the many Yue tribes.' Han-dynasty texts grouped these peoples together because they all called themselves Yue (越) but were actually dozens of distinct groups: 于越 in Zhejiang, 闽越 in Fujian, 南越 in Guangdong, 骆越 in Vietnam. Modern Vietnamese 'Việt' descends from the same word.