The nine sons of the dragon are
Chinese dragon
The Chinese dragon, also known as ''loong'', ''long'' or ''lung'', is a legendary creature in Chinese mythology, Chinese folklore, and Chinese culture at large. Chinese dragons have many Outline of life forms, animal-like forms such as Bixi (my ...
s who are the
mythological
Myth is a folklore genre consisting of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not objectively true, the identification of a narrat ...
sons of the
Dragon King
The Dragon King, also known as the Dragon God, is a Chinese water and weather god. He is regarded as the dispenser of rain, commanding over all bodies of water. He is the collective personification of the ancient concept of the '' lóng'' in C ...
. There are many variations in the different descriptions of the nine sons, including in basic facts like their names, but all versions state that there are nine.
History
![Neixiang Yamen 08](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/57/Neixiang_Yamen_08.jpg)
The oldest known attestation of the children of the dragon list is found in the ''Shuyuan zaji'' (, ''Miscellaneous records from the bean garden'') by
Lu Rong (1436–1494); however, he noted that the list enumerates mere synonyms of various antiques, not children of a dragon.
Several
Ming Dynasty
The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...
texts list what were claimed as the Nine Offspring of the Dragon (), and subsequently these feature prominently in popular Chinese stories and writings. , quoting Xie Zhaozhe (, 1567–1624) in his work ''Wu Za Zu'' (, ca. 1592) gives the following listing in order of oldest to youngest:
A well-known work of the end of the sixteenth century, the ''Wuzazu'' , informs us about the nine different young of the dragon, whose shapes are used as ornaments according to their nature.
*The ''qiú niú'' , (Form of dragon) a creature that likes music, are used to adorn musical instruments.
*The ''yá zì'' , (Hybrid of wolf and dragon) a creature that likes to fight, is aggressive and is normally found on cross-guards on sword as ornaments.
*The ''cháo fēng'' , (Resemble a Phoenix and dragon) a creature that likes to adventure. They are typically placed on the four corners of roofs.
*The '' pú láo'' , (Four leg small form dragon class) a creature that likes to scream, and are represented on the tops of bells, used as handles.
*The ''suān ní'' , (Hybrid of lion and dragon) a creature that likes to sit down, are represented upon the bases of Buddhist idols (under the Buddhas' or Bodhisattvas' feet).
*The '' bì xì'' , also known as ''bà xià'' (Hybrid of turtle and dragon) a creature with a large shell able to carry heavy objects, and are normally found on under grave-monuments.
*The ''bì àn'' , (Hybrid of tiger and dragon) a creature that likes litigation, are placed over prison gates (in order to keep guard).
*The ''bā xià'' , (Hybrid of reptilia animal and dragon) a creature that likes to drink water, and is typically used on bridge structures.
*The '' chī wěn'' , (Hybrid of fish and dragon) a creature that likes swallowing, are placed on both ends of the ridgepoles of roofs (to swallow all evil influences).
Further, the same author enumerates nine other kinds of dragons, which used as ornamental decoration or as part of classical Chinese architecture. These examples can be found architecture throughout Asia used for adorning key-holes, on roofing, incense burners, door knockers, bridges, etc.
The ''
Sheng'an waiji'' () collection by the poet
Yang Shen
Yang Shen (; 1488–1559) was a poet in the Chinese Ming dynasty. His courtesy name was Yongxiu (); his art names included Sheng'an (), Bonan Shanren () and Diannan Shushi ().
Yang Shen was the son of Yang Tinghe and originally lived in Chengd ...
(, 1488–1559) gives different 5th and 9th names for the dragon's nine children: the ''
tāo tiè'' (), form of beasts, which loves to eat and is found on food-related wares, and the ''jiāo tú'' (), which looks like a conch or clam, does not like to be disturbed, and is used on the front door or the doorstep. Yang's list is ''bì xì'', ''chī wěn'' or ''cháo fēng'', ''pú láo'', ''bì àn'', ''tāo tiè'', ''qiú niú'', ''yá zì'', ''suān ní'', and ''jiāo tú''. In addition, there are some sayings including ''xì xì'' (); which have the shape of the ''chī hǔ'' ( One kind small form dragon), and are fond of literature, are represented on the sides of grave-monuments.
Modern names
The 9 sons of the dragon were recognized by the Chinese government's official
Shanghai Mint in 2012's
year of the Dragon by issuing 2 sets of coins, one in silver and one in brass. Each coin in the 9 coin sets depicts one of the 9 sons. A 10th additional coin was issued depicting the father dragon in silver and brass, which has iconography of the 9 sons on the reverse, for a total of 20 coins in the series. The coins are certified by
NGC with the following names:
* Bi An
*
Bi Xi
Bixi, or Bi Xi (), is a figure from Chinese mythology. One of the 9 sons of the Dragon King, he is depicted as a dragon with the shell of a turtle. Stone sculptures of Bixi have been used in Chinese culture for centuries as a decorative plinth ...
* Chao Feng
*
Chi Wen
* Fu Xi (The real name is Xi Xi)
*
Pu Lao
* Qiu Niu
* Suan Ni
* Ya Zi
[CCT3605]
2012 7.5 oz silver lunar dragon 9 sons of the dragon Ya Zi
/ref>
Number nine
The number nine
9 is a number, numeral, and glyph.
9 or nine may also refer to:
Dates
* AD 9, the ninth year of the AD era
* 9 BC, the ninth year before the AD era
* 9, numerical symbol for the month of September
Places
* Nine, Portugal, a parish in the ...
is special in China as it is the largest possible single digit, and Chinese dragons are frequently connected with it. For example, a Chinese dragon is normally described in terms of nine attributes and usually has 117 (9x13) scales - 81 (9x9) Yang and 36 (9x4) Yin. This is also why there are nine forms of the dragon and there are 9 sons of the dragon. The Nine-Dragon Wall
A Nine-Dragon Wall or Nine-Dragon Screen () is a type of screen wall with reliefs of nine different Chinese dragons. Such walls are typically found in imperial Chinese palaces and gardens.
Early reference to the tradition of putting a screen wa ...
is a spirit wall
A spirit screen, also called spirit wall or screen wall, ( or ) is used to shield an entrance gate in traditional Chinese architecture. Spirit screens can be positioned either on the outside or the inside of the gate they are protecting. The Chines ...
with images of nine different dragons, and is found in imperial Chinese palaces and gardens. Because nine was considered the number of the emperor, only the most senior officials were allowed to wear nine dragons on their robes — and then only with the robe completely covered with surcoat
A surcoat or surcote is an outer garment that was commonly worn in the Middle Ages by soldiers. It was worn over armor to show insignia and help identify what side the soldier was on. In the battlefield the surcoat was also helpful with keeping ...
s. Lower-ranking officials had eight or five dragons on their robes, again covered with surcoats; even the emperor himself wore his dragon robe with one of its nine dragons hidden from view.
There are many places in China with the phrase "Nine Dragons" in their name, the most famous being Kowloon (in Cantonese) in Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...
. The part of the Mekong
The Mekong or Mekong River is a trans-boundary river in East Asia and Southeast Asia. It is the world's twelfth longest river and the third longest in Asia. Its estimated length is , and it drains an area of , discharging of water annual ...
in Vietnam is known as ''Cửu Long'', with the same meaning.
See also
* Chi (mythology)
''Chi'' () means either "a hornless dragon" or "a mountain demon" (namely, ) in Chinese mythology. Hornless dragons were a common motif in ancient Chinese art, and the ''chiwen'' (lit. "hornless-dragon mouth") was an imperial roof decoration in ...
* Chinese dragon
The Chinese dragon, also known as ''loong'', ''long'' or ''lung'', is a legendary creature in Chinese mythology, Chinese folklore, and Chinese culture at large. Chinese dragons have many Outline of life forms, animal-like forms such as Bixi (my ...
* Chinese mythology
Chinese mythology () is mythology that has been passed down in oral form or recorded in literature in the geographic area now known as Greater China. Chinese mythology includes many varied myths from regional and cultural traditions.
Much of t ...
* Chinese gods
Chinese traditional religion is polytheistic; many deities are worshipped in a pantheistic view where divinity is inherent in the world. The gods are energies or principles revealing, imitating and propagating the way of Heaven ('' Tian'' ), wh ...
* Dragon King
The Dragon King, also known as the Dragon God, is a Chinese water and weather god. He is regarded as the dispenser of rain, commanding over all bodies of water. He is the collective personification of the ancient concept of the '' lóng'' in C ...
* King of the Gods
* List of deities
This is an index of lists of deities of the different religions, cultures and mythologies of the world.
* List of deities by classification
* Lists of deities by cultural sphere
* List of fictional deities
* Names of God
There are various ...
* Denglong (mythology)
The Dēnglóng (), or Wàngtiānhǒu (), Cháotiānhǒu (), or simply Hǒu () is a Chinese legendary creature.
History
Legend has it that Denglong is one of the sons of the Dragon King, and has the habit of guarding. Used on Huabiaos, it s ...
References
*
*
External links
The Nine Dragon Scroll , Dragon History , The Circle of the Dragon
* ttp://vimeo.com/81350447 The 9 Sons of the Dragon on Vimeo
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chinese Dragon
Chinese architectural history
Chinese iconography
Chinese dragons
Chinese sculpture
9 Sons Of The Dragon
The nine sons of the dragon are Chinese dragons who are the mythological sons of the Dragon King. There are many variations in the different descriptions of the nine sons, including in basic facts like their names, but all versions state that the ...
National personifications