Manchu (All Terms)

Authors: Lyu Haocheng.

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The Manchus are a people whose traditional homeland lies in Northeast China, especially in the region of the Changbai Mountains and the Amur/Heilongjiang basin. Traditionally they lived by hunting, fishing, and gathering, and later also by agriculture. Their indigenous religion, Manchu Shamanism, is characterized by animism, nature worship, ancestor worship, and the worship of Heaven. Among natural phenomena, the sun, moon, and stars were especially sacred. Star worship was historically as important as ancestor worship; Qing-dynasty sources such as the Jilin Tongzhi (吉林通志), Jilin Jiuwenlu (鸡林旧闻录), and the Imperially Commissioned Manchu Rites for Sacrificing to Spirits and Heaven (钦定满洲祭神祭天典礼) record these customs. Living in a high-latitude cold region with long winters and clear night skies, the Manchu ancestors developed a star-based calendrical and ritual system centred on winter constellations.

Transliteration Table

The Latin transliteration of Manchu used here follows the Möllendorff system, which is currently regarded as the most authoritative Manchu transliteration. It should be noted that the Manchu script must be written vertically and requires a dedicated font. The same letter has different forms depending on its position within a word (similar to Arabic), and some consonants are written differently depending on the following vowel (e.g., t, d, k, g, h). The Manchu script shown in the table is only one example and does not necessarily show the correct Manchu letter forms; please refer to the images in the individual star-name entries for the correct spelling.

To ensure accuracy, Manchu terms in subsequent terminology lists will be transcribed using the Möllendorff transliteration, and no Manchu script will be provided.

Manchu	Unicode	Möllendorff transliteration	IPA	commentary
Vowels
ᠠ	1820	a	/ä/
ᡝ	185D	e	/ə/
ᡳ	1873	i	/i/
ᠣ	1823	o	/ɔ/
ᡠ	1860	u	/u/
ᡡ	1861	ū	/ʊ/
᠊ᡟ	185F	y	/ɹ̩, ɻ̩/	The vowel y is used only in certain syllables of Chinese transcriptions; see "Special Syllables" below.
Consonants
ᠨ	1828	n	/n/	In syllable-final position, it is usually silent, but it causes nasalization of the preceding vowel.
᠊ᠩ	1829	ng	/ŋ/
ᡴ᠊	1874	k	/kʰ, qʰ/	Before a, o, and ū, it is pronounced /qʰ/; before e, i, and u, it is pronounced /kʰ/. The letter has different forms depending on context.
ᡤ	1864	g	/k, q/	Before a, o, and ū, it is pronounced /q/; before e, i, and u, it is pronounced /k/. The letter has different forms depending on context.
ᡥ	1865	h	/x, χ/	Before a, o, and ū, it is pronounced /χ/; before e, i, and u, it is pronounced /x/. The letter has different forms depending on context.
ᠪ	182A	b	/p/
ᡦ	1866	p	/pʰ/
ᠰ	1830	s	/s, ɕ/	Before i, it is pronounced /ɕ/.
ᡧ	1867	š	/ʃ/
ᡨ	1868	t	/tʰ/	The letter has different forms depending on context.
ᡩ	1869	d	/t/	The letter has different forms depending on context.
ᠯ	182F	l	/l/
ᠮ	182E	m	/m/
ᠴ	1834	c	/t͡ʃʰ, t͡ɕʰ/	Before i, it is pronounced /t͡ɕʰ/.
ᠵ	1835	j	/t͡ʃ, t͡ɕ/	Before i, it is pronounced /t͡ɕ/.
ᠶ	1836	y	/j/
ᡵ	1875	r	/r/
ᡶ	1876	f	/f/	The letter has different forms depending on context.
ᠸ	1838	w	/w/	It may occur only before the vowels a and e.
ᠺ	183A	k῾	/kʰ/	It occurs only before a, o, and ū, and it is used to transliterate foreign words.
ᡬ	186C	g῾	/k/	It occurs only before a, o, and ū, and it is used to transliterate foreign words.
ᡭ	186D	h῾	/x/	It occurs only before a, o, and ū, and it is used to transliterate foreign words.
ᡮ	186E	ts῾	/t͡sʰ/	Used to transliterate Chinese words.
ᡯ	186F	dz	/t͡s/	Used to transliterate Chinese words.
ᡰ	1870	ž	/ʒ/	Used to transliterate Chinese words.
Special Syllables
ᡮᡟ	186E 185F	ts	/t͡sʰɹ̩/	Used to transliterate Chinese words.
ᡯᡳ᠌	186F 1873	dzi	/t͡sɹ̩/	Used to transliterate Chinese words.
ᠰᡟ	1830 185F	sy	/sɹ̩/	Used to transliterate Chinese words.
ᡱᡳ	1871 1873	c῾y	/t͡ʃʰɻ̩/	Used to transliterate Chinese words.
ᡷᡳ	1877 1873	jy	/t͡ʃɻ̩/	Used to transliterate Chinese words.

In this transliteration, sh and th are not English digraphs. Read each letter separately: sh = s + h, th = t + h. The h is /χ/ before a, o, ū and /x/ before e, i, u. Thus gasha ("bird", read as /qäs.χä/) has s + /χ/, not English sh /ʃ/; bithe ("writing, book", read as /pit.xə/) has t + /x/, not English th /θ/ or /ð/. In Möllendorff, the /ʃ/ sound is written š, not sh.

List of terms

Manchu	English	commentary
usiha	star	It can represent a single star, as well as a constellation or a asterism.
enduri
mama
mafa

Solar System Names

Manchu	IPA	English	commentary
Šun	/ʃun/	Sun	In the ancient creation mythology of the Manchu people, the solar deity is also known as Šun Morin (literally "sun horse"). According to traditional narratives, humanity owes its eternal light and warmth to Šun Morin. Moreover, it is by its ceaseless running, day and night, that the cycle of the four seasons, the alternation of heat and cold, and the rhythms of tides are brought about.
Biya	/pjä/	Moon
Muke usiha	/mu.kʰə u.ɕi.χä/	Mercury	Calque (semantic loan) from the Chinese term Shuǐ Xīng (水星), literally meaning "water star".
Aisin usiha	/äi.ɕin u.ɕi.χä/	Venus	Calque from the Chinese term Jīn Xīng (金星), literally meaning "metal star".
Tuwa usiha	/tʰwä u.ɕi.χä/	Mars	Calque from the Chinese term Huǒ Xīng (火星), literally meaning "fire star".
Moo usiha	/moː u.ɕi.χä/	Jupiter	Calque from the Chinese term Mù Xīng (木星), literally meaning "wood star".
Boihon usiha	/pɔi.χɔn u.ɕi.χä/	Saturn	Calque from the Chinese term Tǔ Xīng (土星), literally meaning "earth star".

List of Manchu asterism names

Fu Yuguang and the Folk Manchu Constellations

Fu Yuguang (富育光, 1933–2020) was a leading authority on Manchu folklore and folk culture. His fieldwork also covered Manchu heaven-worship traditions. In 1988 he published A Study of Manchu Shamanic Star Rituals and Customs (满族萨满教星祭俗考), a detailed record of Manchu star ritual culture. It catalogues eighteen folk Manchu constellations, provides hand-drawn star charts, and gives identifications with modern constellations. It remains the most important source for understanding Manchu sky culture.

Traditional Manchu Shamanistic Asterisms

No.	Chinese translit. (Fu, 2007)	Reconstructed Manchu (Möllendorff transliteration)	Qing official Manchu	English	Modern constellation	commentary
1	那丹那拉呼	Nadan Narhū(n)	Nadan Daihūn (那丹岱珲)	Seven Maidens	Tau (Pleiades)	An incarnation of the star-spreading goddess Elden Hehe.
2	恩都力僧固	Enduri Senggu	Enduri Senggu	Hedgehog Goddess	Cyg	As a deity, also known as Jeguru Enduri.
3	塔其妈妈	Taci Mama		Taci (Goddess)	Cas	Timekeeping goddess.
4	托包乌西哈	Tobo usiha		Hut	Per
5	恩都力特克	Enduri Tehe		God of the Stand	Peg, And
6	依兰乌西哈	Ilan usiha		Three Stars	Ori (Orion's Belt)
7	那丹乌西哈	Nadan usiha		Seven Stars	UMa (Big Dipper)
8	嘎思哈	Gasha		Divine Eagle	Aur, Gem, Per, Ori, Tau, Eri	The eagle deity in Manchu legend.
9	兴恶里乌西哈	Singgeri usiha		Rat	Leo	The sun-welcoming Rat Goddess.
10	莫林乌西哈	Morin usiha		Horse		Not one particular star, but a collective term for four stars, including prominent stars such as Sirius and Arcturus.
11	瓦丹星	Wadan		Wadan (The Celestial Altar)	Crv
12	尼马沁星	Imcin		Drum	Ari, Tri, And	The Drum Stars and the Drumstick Stars.
13	西离妈妈	Siri Mama		Goddess of Carp	Lyn, Cam
14	妥亲乌西妈妈	Terkin Usiha Mama		Goddess of the Staircase Stars	Vir, Com
15	乌西哈布鲁古	Usiha Buruhun		Star of Buruhun (The Dawn Beast)	Boo, CVni, Com
16	佛朵妈妈	Fodoho Mama		Goddess of Willow	Hya (Head of Hydra)	Evidently related to the Chinese lunar mansion Willow (柳宿).
17	阿苏乌西哈	Asu usiha		Net	Her	An incarnation of the hunting deity Banda Mafa.
18	尼玛哈乌西哈	Nimaha usiha		Fishhook	Sco
19	苏勒干乌西哈	Sureken usiha		Star of Wisdom

Other Asterism and Star Names

Manchu (Möllendorff transliteration)	English	etymology	Modern Star/Constellation Name
Jodorgan usiha	Weaving Wife	Abbreviation of jodoro-sargan, literally "Weaving Wife". Borrowed from the Chinese star name "Zhinü" (织女, Weaver Girl).	α Lyr, Vega
Igeri/Ikiri usiha	Ox-Leading	Abbreviation of ihan-elgembi, literally "ox-leading" (ihan "ox" + elgembi "to lead"); another explanation derives it from ihan-age ("Ox Brother"), in which the final -ri is meaningless and serves only to fill out the syllable. Borrowed from the Chinese star name "Qianniu" (牵牛, Oxherd/Cowherd).	α Aql, Altair
Borboho usiha			CrB
Ilmahū/Ilmoho usiha	Prop-Stick		Ori (Orion's Sword)
Hadaha usiha	Nail Star		α UMi, Polaris
Juru Sirha	Pair of Silver-Maned Steeds		UMi (β UMi, γ UMi)