CHARACTER AND NAME GUIDE
HISTORICAL PERIOD
Twin Jades of Jiangdong is set in the late Eastern Han period beginning in the 180s CE, before there were the three kingdoms that are more well-known in pop culture 220 CE onward. During this period, a puppet emperor sat on the throne, and many warlords fought for power, so various figures that appear here do not make it into later Three Kingdoms stories. Other notable names making an appearance are still yet to show up.
CHARACTERS
MAIN CHARACTERS
SUN CE 孙策: Courtesy name Bofu 伯符. Sun Jian’s eldest son, brother to Sun Quan, Zhou Yu’s eventual lord. He and Zhou Yu are the same age. They met when they were four and had a serious fight but save each other’s lives several times over the years.
ZHOU YU 周瑜: Courtesy name Gongjin 公瑾. Zhou Yi’s only son, one of Sun Ce’s eventual strategists and generals. He and Sun Ce are the same age.
SUPPORTING CHARACTERS
CAO CAO 曹操: Courtesy name Mengde 孟德. Tried to assassinate Dong Zhuo but failed.
CAO PI 曹丕: Cao Cao’s son.
DIAOCHAN 貂蝉: One of the Four Beauties of China. Wang Yun’s ward/adoptive daughter.
DONG ZHUO 董卓: Formerly the prefect of Jin Province. Arguably the most powerful man in all of China currently. Deposed the previous emperor and installed Emperor Xian on the throne.
GAN NING 甘宁: Courtesy name Xingba 兴霸. The bandit-like ferryman.
GAO SHUN 高顺: A commander who serves under Lü Bu.
GONGSUN ZAN 公孙瓒: Commander of the first set of white-armored troops that fought against Lü Bu. Unlike most of the other military generals in this story, he is not known for his prowess on the battlefield.
HUA XIONG 华雄: Military commander serving Dong Zhuo.
HUANG GAI 黄盖: One of Sun Jian’s generals. Old but fiery.
LIU BIAO 刘表: A distant relative of the emperor, governor of Jing Province.
LIU XIE 劉協: Emperor Xian. The emperor. A child.
LÜ BU 吕布: Courtesy name Fengxian 奉先. The General of the Household. Well-known for his fighting skills.
LU SU 鲁肃: Courtesy name Zijing 子敬. Zhou Yu’s friend, also from Shu County.
MADAME SUN 孙母: Also called the Lady of Wu 吴氏 for her original family name. Sun Ce and Sun Quan’s mother.
MADAME ZHOU 周母: Zhou Yu’s mother.
QIAO MAO 桥瑁: One of Zhou Yi’s old friends, the prefect of Dong Commandery.
QIAO XUAN 桥玄: Qiao Mao’s nephew.
SUN JIAN 孙坚: Courtesy name Wentai. Sun Ce’s father, the prefect of Changsha, known as the Tiger of Jiangdong. One of the eighteen lords who join the coalition against Dong Zhuo.
SUN QUAN 孙权: Courtesy name Zhongmou 仲謀. Sun Ce’s younger brother.
WANG YUN 王允: The Minister of the Masses. Old friends with Qiao Mao.
WU JING 吴景: Sun Ce’s maternal uncle, the prefect of Liyang.
XIAO QIAO 小乔: One of Qiao Mao’s daughters.
XU GONG 许贡: The governor of Wu Commandery.
YUAN SHAO 袁绍: Courtesy name Benchu 袁本初. Yuan Shu’s cousin.
YUAN SHU 袁術: Yuan Shao’s cousin.
ZHANG ZHAO 张昭: Courtesy name Zibu 子布. A scholar who formerly served Tao Qian, now serving Sun Ce.
ZHAO YUN 赵云: Courtesy name Zilong 赵子龙. A commander who originally served under Gongsun Zan.
ZHEN MI 甄宓: Yuan Shao’s daughter-in-law.
ZHOU SHANG 周尚: Zhou Yu’s paternal uncle, the prefect of Danyang.
ZHOU YI 周異: Zhou Yu’s father, holds a minor position in court. He had some skill in acupuncture, though he passed very little of his medical knowledge to his son.
NAME GUIDE
NAMES, HONORIFICS, AND TITLES
Courtesy Names and Given Names
Usually made up of two characters, a courtesy name is given to an individual when they come of age. Traditionally, this was at the age of twenty during one’s crowning ceremony, but it can also be presented when an elder or teacher deems the recipient worthy. Though generally a male-only tradition, there is historical precedent for women adopting a courtesy name after marriage. Courtesy names were a tradition reserved for the upper class.
It was considered disrespectful for one’s peers of the same generation to address someone by their given name, especially in formal or written communication. Use of one’s given name was reserved only for elders, close friends, and spouses.
This practice is no longer used in modern China but is commonly seen in historically inspired media. As such, many characters have more than one name. Its implementation in novels is irregular and is often treated malleably for the sake of storytelling.
Terms of Address
ZHUGONG: A term for a vassal addressing their lord.
GONGZI: A term to refer to a young master.
SHAOYE: Another term to refer to a young master.
LAOYE: A term to refer to a master. It can also be used as slang to refer to oneself in an arrogant way.
SHIBO: A term of address meaning “uncle.”
LANG: A term of address meaning “man.”
SHIZHI: A term of address to refer to another master’s disciples, meaning “niece” or “nephew.”
DIDI: A term of familiar address to refer to a younger brother or younger male friend.
Diminutives and Name Tags
-GUNIANG: A suffix used when addressing a young lady.
-DAREN: A suffix used when addressing a lord.
-MOU: A suffix used as a traditional way to refer to oneself in third person.
-ER: Affectionate diminutive. A suffix that literally means “son.”
-XIONG: A suffix meaning “elder brother.” Used as a familiar way of addressing a friend of the same age.
-DAGE: A suffix meaning “elder brother.” It’s usually used as a term of respect. It can also be used stand alone.
-XIONGDI: A suffix meaning “brother.”
PRONUNCIATION GUIDE
Mandarin Chinese is the official state language of mainland China, and pinyin is the official system of romanization in which it is written. As Mandarin is a tonal language, pinyin uses diacritical marks (e.g., ā, á, ă, à) to indicate these tonal inflections. Most words use one of four tones, though some are a neutral tone. Furthermore, regional variance can change the way native Chinese speakers pronounce the same word. For those reasons and more, please consider the guide below a simplified introduction to pronunciation of select character names and sounds from the world of Twin Jades of Jiangdong. More resources are available at sevenseasdanmei.com.
NOTE ON SPELLING
Romanized Mandarin Chinese words with identical spelling in pinyin—and even pronunciation—may well have different meanings. These words are more easily differentiated in written Chinese, which uses logographic characters.
Zhoū Yú
Zhoū as in Joe
Yú as in uee
Sūn Cè
Sūn as in sw for swan, u as in stuff, n as in when
Cè as in cz, uh
GENERAL CONSONANTS
Some Mandarin Chinese consonants sound very similar, such as z/c/s and zh/ch/sh. Audio samples will provide the best opportunity to learn the difference between them.
X: somewhere between the sh in sheep and s in silk
Q: a very aspirated ch as in charm
C: ts as in pants
Z: z as in zoom
S: s as in silk
CH: ch as in charm
ZH: dg as in dodge
SH: sh as in shave
G: hard g as in graphic
GENERAL VOWELS
The pronunciation of a vowel may depend on its preceding consonant. For example, the “i” in “shi” is distinct from the “i” in “di.” Vowel pronunciation may also change depending on where the vowel appears in a word, for example the “i” in “shi” versus the “i” in “ting.” Finally, compound vowels are often—though not always—pronounced as conjoined but separate vowels. You’ll find a few of the trickier compounds below.
IU: as in ewe
IE: ye as in yes
UO: war as in warm
✦ ✦ ✦
GLOSSARY
COMMANDER: A military leader who commands a large group of men.
GOVERNOR: A high-ranking official often dispatched by the imperial court to keep an eye on a region. A possibly misleading nomenclature as they do not do any governing.
IMPERIAL EXAMINATIONS: A series of examinations designed to select the brightest of the populace to serve in the court as officials. They were separated into three main stages: entry, provincial, then palace, focusing heavily on Confucian doctrine and literature. Passing the exam was a great honor: The top scorer, or Principal Graduate, of each exam would return home showered in accolades. It was the only method through which someone could become part of the aristocracy.
PREFECT: The highest ranking official who governs a commandery (a region that often includes one or more cities).
RANK SYSTEM: For much of Chinese history, officials were divided into ranks which denoted their status within the court, with upper first rank being the highest. Courtesy demanded that lower-rank officials show appropriate respect to those ranked above them.
TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE: Traditional medical practices in China are commonly based around the idea that qi, or vital energy, circulates in the body through channels called meridians similarly to how blood flows through the circulatory system. Acupuncture points, or acupoints, are special nodes, most of which lie along the meridians. Stimulating them by massage, acupuncture, or other methods is believed to affect the flow of qi and can be used for healing or incapacitation.
LOCATIONS
In general, during the Han dynasty, regions were divided into three levels:
Provinces
Commanderies
Counties
CITIES THROUGH COMMANDERIES
Please note, most of the capitals of the commanderies and counties had the same name as the county itself.
LUOYANG: The imperial capital of the Han dynasty.
SHU COUNTY (CITY): Zhou Yu’s hometown, south and east of Lake Chao.
XIAPI COUNTY: Located within Xu Province.
CHANG’AN: The previous capital of the Han dynasty.
SHOUCHUN: This lies to the north and west of Lake Chao.
CHANGSHA: Sun Jian served here as prefect.
WU COMMANDERY: Previously was Xu Gong’s territory.
DANYANG: Zhou Yu’s uncle serves here as prefect.
LIYANG: Sun Ce’s uncle serves here as prefect.
LANDMARKS
LAKE CHAO: The same Lake Chao that exists in modern-day Anhui.
MOUNT GU: A lone mountain that sits on the banks of Lake Chao, opposite Shu County.
HANGU PASS: An important pass that lies just north of Luoyang.
REGIONS
JIANGNAN: The area of China south of the mid to lower reaches of the Yangtze River. Commonly thought of as a “land of plenty” due to its long association with rice farming.
JIANGZUO: The area south of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River.
JIANGDONG: The area specifically around modern-day Jiangxi, Jiangsu, and parts of Anhui Province south of the Yangtze.
THE THIRTEEN PROVINCES: Ji, Yang, Jing, Xu, Yi, and Liang are the main provinces covered, corresponding with the thirteen provinces of the Eastern Han as marked on maps.