龙 (lóng): dragon

Measure Word

一条龙 tiáo

Meanings

1 dragon
2 imperial

Characters

龙

lóng

dragon

The Chinese dragon symbolizes power, strength, and good luck. It is the national symbol of China.

Examples

HSK 1

今年是龙年。

Jīnnián shì lóngnián.

This year is the Year of the Dragon.

HSK 3

他属龙。

Tā shǔ lóng.

He was born in the Year of the Dragon.

HSK 7-9

中国人是龙的传人。

Zhōngguórén shì lóng de chuánrén.

Chinese people are descendants of the dragon.

Tips

culture

The Chinese dragon (龙) is a symbol of power, luck, and imperial authority - completely different from Western dragons. Emperors were called 真龙天子 ('true dragon, son of heaven') and dragon robes were reserved for royalty.

culture

Dragon years are the most popular for having babies in China. Hospitals see a noticeable spike in births during 龙年 because parents believe dragon children will be powerful and successful.

history

The traditional character 龍 is one of the most complex common characters. The simplified 龙 is dramatically simpler - this is one of the most extreme simplifications in the whole system.

Components

pictograph

龙 lóng

dragon

Heavily simplified from traditional 龍 (16 strokes) in the 1956 reform - one of the most radical reductions in modern Chinese. The traditional form combined 立 'stand' over 月 'flesh' beside a curling serpent body. The five-stroke 龙 is a stylized cursive contraction preserving only the silhouette of the rearing creature, no longer analyzable into independent components.

Radical

Dragon Kangxi #212

A near-self-contained radical: 龙 indexes itself plus a few archaic compounds (龚 reverence, 龛 niche / shrine, 龔, 龐). Almost all dragon vocabulary is built by compounding 龙 with another character (龙舟 dragon boat, 龙头 faucet / leader, 恐龙 dinosaur). Simplified 龙 has 5 strokes; traditional 龍 has 16.