鲧 (Gǔn) · Gun, a mythical figure, father of Yu the Great

Meanings

1 Gun, a mythical figure, father of Yu the Great
2 (archaic) a kind of large fish

Characters

鲧

Gǔn

Gun (flood-myth figure); a large fish

Examples

HSK 5

传说鲧治水失败，他的儿子大禹后来成功了。

Chuánshuō Gǔn zhìshuǐ shībài, tā de érzi Dà Yǔ hòulái chénggōng le.

Legend says Gun failed to control the floods, and his son Yu the Great later succeeded.

Tips

history

鲧 is not used as an ordinary word in modern Chinese - it appears almost only as the name of this flood-myth figure (also written 鮌). Its older meaning, 'a large fish', is obsolete; the everyday word for fish is 鱼.

Components

radical

鱼 yú

fish

鱼 the fish radical reflects the original sense, 'a large fish', which became the legendary figure's name.

phonetic

系 xì

to tie; connection

系 gives the sound, drifted to gǔn. In the traditional form 鯀 the phonetic is the fuller 系-derived element; the simplified form keeps 系.

In Pop Culture

鲧 Gǔn

Mythical flood-fighter who dammed the waters and failed; his son 大禹 later tamed the floods by dredging. A classic Chinese parable of rigid versus adaptive method.