周公

Zhōugōng
proper noun #48,030

Meanings

  1. 1 the Duke of Zhou (11th century BC), regent of the early Western Zhou, revered as a sage

Examples

HSK 1
Zhōugōng shì Zhōu Wǔwáng de dìdi.
The Duke of Zhou was the younger brother of King Wu of Zhou.
HSK 3
Tā shàngkè de shíhou yòu qù jiàn Zhōugōng le.
He fell asleep in class again, 'off to see the Duke of Zhou'.

Tips

history
His name was 姬旦. When his brother King Wu died, he ruled for the boy king 周成王, put down a great revolt and is credited with setting down the rites and music of Zhou. His son founded the state of 鲁, Confucius's home, and Confucius held him up as the model of a wise minister.
usage
In old age Confucius complained that he no longer 梦见周公, dreamed of the Duke of Zhou. So 梦见周公 and 去见周公 became joking ways to say 'to fall asleep', and the old dream-reading book is called 周公解梦.

Stroke Order

周 zhōu
公 gōng