Anqing Prefecture 安庆 (an1 qing4)
安 means “peace” and 庆 means “to celebrate”. There is a modern city in Anhui Province called Anqing, but its name was established in 1147, a century after the events of Copper Coins.
Baishun Restaurant 百顺 (bai3 shun4)
百 means “hundred” and 顺 means “to follow”. This restaurant is named Baishun for good luck, hoping that the restaurant will attract hundreds of customers.
Bo 伯 (bo2)
“Father’s elder brother”, i.e. “uncle”. This form of address can be attached to the end of someone’s surname, in order to show your respect toward an elder man who is older than your father.
Cun 寸 (Cun4)
A Chinese historical length measurement, equivalent to 3.33 cm.
Da-ge 大哥 (da4 ge1)
Literally “eldest brother” or “big brother”, this is used as a form of colloquial polite address toward a man who is older but not middle-aged or elderly.
Daren 大人 (da4 ren2)
Literally ‘great person’, this is a respectful form of address toward a lord or high-level government official. I translated this as “Sir” in my original TL, as it is basically the same thing.
Daifu 大夫 (dai4 fu)
A colloquial term for a doctor or physician.
Dashi 大师 (da4 shi1)
Great master; grand master. A form of respectful address toward a religious figure, or a figure associated with mystical or votive practices.
Daxian 大仙 (da4 xian1)
Literally ‘great/almighty immortal/deity’, this is a form of respectful address toward a legendary practitioner of martial or mystical arts.
Daye 大爷 (da4 ye2)
Literally ‘great/mighty grandfather’, this is a form of respectful address toward an older/elderly man.
Furen 夫人 (fu1 ren2)
Formal term for wife; madam.
Ge 哥 (ge1)
Literally “older brother”, this is a colloquial form of address toward a peer who is slightly older. It is usually attached to the end of a surname or forename.
Ge County 葛 (ge3)
This does not seem to be based on a real historical place.
Geng 更 (geng1)
A Chinese historical time measurement. Geng denotes the 5 time divisions of the night. According to Wikipedia: “The character for gēng 更, literally meaning "rotation" or "watch", comes from the rotation of watchmen sounding these signals.”
Gongzi 公子 (gong1 zi3)
Respectful address or descriptor for a young man of good birth or high social status, such as the son of someone important.
Guanyin Port 观音 (guan1 yin1)
Guanyin is the Chinese name for Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva.
Guniang 姑娘 (gu1 niang)
“Girl”. This can be a common noun used to refer to a young woman, but it can also be attached at the end of a young woman’s name as a colloquial form of address.
Guoshi 国师 (guo2 shi1)
In my original TL, I translated this as the Great Priest. A nation’s Guoshi is the State Preceptor: the person appointed by the king or emperor who oversees the religious activities of the entire state. (Wikipedia)
Huameng County 华蒙 (hua2 meng2)
This county does not seem to have existed within Guangdong, and appears to have been invented by Musuli for the story. 华 means splendid or prosperous; 蒙 means to cover or conceal, or to encounter.
Huazhi County 花枝 (hua1 zhi1)
This means “flower stem”. Huazhi County does not appear to be a real place.
Hugua Alley 胡瓜 (hu2 gua1)
胡瓜 is a colloquial name for “cucumber”.
Huicui Hall 荟萃 (hui4 cui4)
This is a literary word that means “distinguished people or fine objects gathered together”.
Huizhou Prefecture 徽州 (hui1 zhou1)
A historical place that covers parts of today’s Anhui and Zhejiang provinces. This location was renamed Huizhou from Shezhou in 1121, which is actually after the setting of Copper Coins. However, Huizhou as a name remains relevant today because it is where the second character of Anhui Province’s name comes from.
Jie 姐 (jie3)
Older sister.
Jiefu 姐夫 (ji3 fu1)
Older sister’s husband.
Mount Jiguan 鸡冠 (ji1 guan1)
鸡 means chicken/cockerel; 冠 means crown. This mountain was most likely named this because its contour resembles a cockerel’s comb.
Jin 斤 (jin1)
A Chinese weight measurement, equivalent to 0.5 kg.
Jiqing Street 吉庆 (ji2 qing4)
吉 means auspicious; 庆 means celebrate.
Jiuwei Hall 九味 (jiu3 wei4)
九 means nine; 味 means flavors or savors. I translated this as ‘Hall of Nine Savours’ in my original TL.
Langzhou 朗州 (lang3 zhou1)
Langzhou is a historical area that existed from the Sui dynasty until the Northern Song dynasty. It is located in modern-day Hunan Province.
Lao 老 (lao3)
“Old.” This form of address can be attached to the front of someone’s surname, in order to show your respect toward a peer when you are both middle-aged or older.
Lao-furen 老夫人 (lao3 fu1 ren2)
老 means old. The lao-furen of a household is the wife of the laoye.
Niezhang 孽障 (nie4 zhang4)
Things designated as evil in Buddhist teachings, or harbingers of evil. It’s frequently used in the Chinese classic, Dream of the Red Chamber. In modern times, it can be used to insult anyone who is disobedient or misbehaving.
Lao-taitai 老太太
Literally ‘old mistress’ or ‘old wife’, this is a form of respectful address toward an elderly woman in a household.
Laotou 老头
Literally ‘old head’, this is an informal way to denote an older or elderly man. It can be translated to “old man” or even “old guy”.
Laoye 老爷 (lao3 ye2)
Literally ‘old grandfather’, this is a form of respectful address toward the patriarch of a household.
Liangzhou 凉州 (liang2 zhou1)
This is a historical region in the northwest of China, roughly corresponding to areas included in the Silk Roads, and Gansu Province today.
Lujiatang 陆家塘 (lu4 jia1 tang2)
Literally “Lu family embankment/pond”. Small villages tended to have once been inhabited by members of one clan, and so places named after a certain family are common.
Luomei Street 落梅 (luo4 mei2)
落 means “to fall” and 梅 means “plum blossom”.
Ningyang County 宁阳 (ning2 yang2)
This county does not seem to have existed within historical Huizhou, and appears to have been invented by Musuli for the story. 宁 means peace; 阳 means light, and is the ‘yang’ in opposition to ‘yin’ in Daoism.
Mount Panlong 盘龙 (pan2 long2)
The name means “curled dragon” or “a dragon wrapped around”. There is a real mountain in Sichuan Province called Panlong Mountain, and since this mountain in Copper Coins is in the Shu region, it is likely that Musuli meant for it to actually be a real place.
Qingping County 清平 (qing1 ping2)
清 means “clear” and 平 means “balance” or “peace”. Qingping Village is a modern location located within Wangjiang County, Anqing City.
Raozhou Prefecture 饶州 (rao2 zhou1)
A historical place that covers today’s Poyang County, Jiangxi Province.
Sao 嫂 (sao3)
“Elder brother’s wife”. This term can also be used to address a married woman who is not too much older than yourself. It is either appended to the end of someone’s surname or name, or it replaces the name as 嫂子 (sao3 zi). In my original translation, I translated “Chen-sao” as “Auntie Chen” because she is significantly older than everyone who addresses her –– rather, the reason why she is known as “sao” is because she is a servant, and so a more formal term of address would be inappropriate.
Shao-furen 少夫人 (shao4 fu1 ren2)
少 means young. 夫人 means wife/madam. The shao-furen of a household is the wife of the shaoye.
Shaoye 少爷 (shao4 ye2)
Literally ‘young grandfather’, this is a form of respectful address toward the male heirs of a household; a patriarch’s sons.
Shen 婶 (shen3)
The wife of your father’s younger brother, i.e. aunt, auntie - a respectful term of address for someone around your mother’s age.
Shichen 时辰 (shi2 chen)
A historical Chinese form of time measurement, equivalent to 2 hours.
Shiye 师爷 (shi1 ye2)
Literally ‘master grandfather’, this is a government official’s title. A shiye is the head of a yamen, and tends to the legal, fiscal, and bureaucratic issues of his area. In the case of Liu Shiye of Ningyang County, he is a county-level bureaucrat and so he can be called County Officer.
Shu 叔 (shu1)
“Father’s younger brother” or “husband’s younger brother”. It is either appended to the end of someone’s surname or name, or it replaces the name as 叔叔 (shu1 shu). In modern times, it is also used colloquially as “uncle” to indicate any older man, especially when addressed by children or young people. In my original translation, I translated “Chen-shu” as “Uncle Chen” –– even though he is significantly older than everyone who addresses him, the reason why he is known as “shu” is because he is a servant, and so a more formal term of address would be inappropriate.
Songyun 松云 (song1 yun2)
松 means pine tree. 云 means cloud.
Taishan / Mount Tai 泰山 (tai4 shan1)
Taishan is one of the five sacred mountains of China, and has been an important religious location throughout history. (Wikipedia).
Tianxi era 天禧 (tian1 xi3)
The 4th era of Song dynasty Emperor Zhenzong, covering 1017-1021 CE.
Tongdeng 同灯 (tong2 deng1)
同 means together and 灯 means lantern. This is a Buddhist monk’s Dharma name, and is therefore a mononym.
Wangjiang County 望江 (wang4 jiang1)
Literally “watching/overlooking river”. This is an existing county in Anqing city’s jurisdiction.
Wen Village 温 (wen1)
This village is named after the main clan that lives there, whose surname is Wen.
Wolong County 卧龙 (wo1 long2)
卧 means “to hide” and 龙 means “dragon”. While there are many modern places in China named Wolong, it is most likely that this county is fictional.
Wudiqian 五帝钱 (wu3 di4 qian2)
Literally ‘five gods money/coins’, this refers to a chain of five copper coins that are important to Wuxing, a traditional Chinese philosophical concept that is as fundamental as that of Yin and Yang. Geomancy (feng shui) is based on Yin/yang and Wuxing. A wudiqian chain has associations with warding evil and bringing prosperity. The five ‘gods’ mean all of the following:
- North, south, east, west, center
- Metal, wood, water, fire, earth
- The deities that combine these directions and elements (Baidu)
- Yellow, blue, white, red, black
Xia Mountain 霞 (xia2)
霞 describes the light at sunrise or sunset. Considering that this is a mountain in Langzhou, which is in modern-day Hunan, it’s possible that this is the existing Gao Xia mountain (Baidu). It could also be a fictional location.
Xian Cheng 县城 (xian4 cheng2)
县 means county; 城 means city. A county’s xian cheng is the principal town of that county, where the county government (yamen) is based. Sometimes, it might be the only real town in the entire county. Throughout Copper Coins, some county seats do not have their own town names and are simply named after the county, so In my original TL, I translated this as “the ___ County seat”. But this is a mouthful, especially with “the”, so I’ve chosen transcription. With transcription, it’s possible to take “___ Xian Cheng” as a name in and of itself, associated with the county name but also having its own identity, analogous to, for instance, “Mexico” and “Mexico City”.
Xiansheng 先生 (xian1 sheng)
In modern times, this is used as an equivalent to “sir” or “mister” and is attached after a man’s surname. Historically, it has generally been slightly more formal. Some brilliant Chinese women intellectuals from the 20th century have been bestowed the title “xiansheng” (attached behind their full names) as a form of respect. These women include Song Qingling, Bing Xin, and Yang Feng: see this Chinese listicle.
Xiaonanshan 小南山 (xiao3 nan2 shan1)
Literally “small mountain in the north”.
Xingtang Street 杏塘 (xing4 tang2)
杏 means apricot; 塘 means embankment or pool.
Xiong 兄 (xiong1)
“Older brother”. This form of address can be attached to the end of someone’s surname, in order to show your respect toward a peer.
Xiongdi 兄弟 (xiong1 di4)
Literally “big brother, little brother”, this word just means “brother”. It is a colloquial and friendly way to address a peer.
Yamen 衙门 (ya2 men2)
Wikipedia. A yamen both means a local government office, and the building/compound in which this office is located, and in which the head officer lives. The head official of a yamen is the shiye. In the case of Ningyang County, the yamen is a county-level institution so can be called a County Office.
Yanchao Alley 燕巢 (yan4 chao2)
燕 means swallow (the bird); 巢 means nest. In my original TL I transliterated this as Swallownest Alley.
Zhang 丈 (zhang4)
A Chinese length measurement, equivalent to 3.33 m
Zuzong 祖宗 (zu3 zong1)
Ancestor. This is a sarcastic, faux-respectful form of address that Jiang Shining (and sometimes the narrator) uses for Xue Xian.
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