Naming taboo

Cultural taboo in the Chinese cultural sphere Naming tabooChinese nameTraditional Chinese避諱Simplified Chinese避讳TranscriptionsStandard MandarinHanyu PinyinbìhuìBopomofoㄅㄧˋ ㄏㄨㄟˋWade–Gilespi4hui4Yue: CantoneseJyutpingbei6 wai5Southern MinTâi-lôpī-huìVietnamese nameVietnamese alphabetkỵ húykiêng huýHán-Nôm忌諱𪬧諱Korean nameHangul피휘Hanja避諱TranscriptionsRevised RomanizationpihwiMcCune–Reischauerp'ihwiJapanese nameKanji避諱HiraganaひきTranscriptionsRevised Hepburnhiki A naming taboo is a cultural taboo against speaking or writing the given names of exalted persons, notably in China and within the Chinese cultural sphere. It was enforced by several laws throughout Imperial China, but its cultural and possibly religious origins predate the Qin dynasty. Not respecting the appropriate naming taboos was considered a sign of lacking education and respect, and brought shame both to the offender and the offended person. Types The naming taboo of the state (國諱 guóhuì) discouraged the use of the emperor's given name and those of his ancestors. For example, during the Qin dynasty, Qin Shi Huang's given name 政 Zhèng (< *‍OC B-S: *teŋ-