谥 (shì) - Posthumous name — an honorary title given to

谥Tone 4

shì ｜ 12 strokes ｜ radical:

上姝

谥 · shì

Posthumous name — an honorary title given to emperors, nobles, and officials after their death, summarizing their life and character.

Posthumous name — an honorary title given to

Usage highlights

Posthumous namePosthumous title systemConfer a posthumous nameGood posthumous nameBad posthumous namePosthumous name for emperor

Synonyms

  • 谥号— posthumous name (the full term)

Usage & contexts

Examples

  • The emperor received the posthumous title Emperor Wen (文帝).
  • Historians debate the appropriateness of his posthumous name (谥号).
  • The process of conferring posthumous names is called shi fa (谥法).

Collocations

  • Posthumous name(谥号)
  • Posthumous title system(谥法)
  • Confer a posthumous name(赐谥)
  • Good posthumous name(美谥)
  • Bad posthumous name(恶谥)
  • Posthumous name for emperor(帝谥)

Idioms

  • To confer a posthumous name and establish a temple(谥号立庙)
  • The posthumous name reflects the conduct(谥以表行)

Cultural background

FAQ
  • The posthumous name system originated in the Zhou Dynasty to evaluate a ruler's or official's life achievements and moral character.
  • Posthumous names could be complimentary (e.g., 文 for cultured, 武 for martial) or critical (e.g., 厉 for oppressive, 炀 for disrespectful).
  • The system was part of the historical 'rectification of names' (正名) tradition, where names should correspond to reality.

FAQ