武侠 (wǔxiá): wuxia (martial arts chivalry ge…

Meanings

1 wuxia (martial arts chivalry genre)
2 martial arts hero
3 knight-errant

Characters

武

Examples

金庸的武侠小说影响了几代人。

Jīn Yōng de wǔxiá xiǎoshuō yǐngxiǎngle jǐ dài rén.

Jin Yong's wuxia novels influenced generations.

他从小就爱看武侠电影。

Tā cóng xiǎo jiù ài kàn wǔxiá diànyǐng.

He has loved wuxia films since childhood.

Tips

culture

武 = martial, 侠 = chivalrous outlaw. The genre centers on wandering swordsmen bound by a personal code of honor (义) rather than state law. Canonical in modern form through Jin Yong (金庸), Gu Long (古龙), and Liang Yusheng (梁羽生); descended from Tang 传奇 tales and 水浒传.

In Pop Culture

金庸 Jīn Yōng

Louis Cha

The defining wuxia novelist. His 14 novels — 射雕英雄传, 神雕侠侣, 天龙八部, 笑傲江湖, 鹿鼎记 and others — are the genre's backbone and have been adapted dozens of times for TV and film.