General
Information is from dictionaries and other sources. Pinyin reflects Mandarin pronunciation; for some dialect names, it is no more than a polite fiction. Korean glosses are tentative. Comments and corrections welcome. Hover over Green Lettering Green lettering at this site hides a tool tip with glosses, further explanations, etc. Hover cursor to reveal. to see additional information.
The Locustellidae result from the split-up of the old Sylviidae (Old World warbler) assemblage. (Others include the Acrocephalidae, Phylloscipidae, and Scotocercidae, as well as part of the Sylviidae.) In East Asia, the family includes the genera Locustella and Megalurus.
Names in the Locustellidae are all ornithological in nature. All members bear the name 莺 , which serves as the Chinese ornithological equivalent of English 'warbler'. (Note that 莺 is not likely to be used on its own, especially in speech, as it is homophonous with 'eagle' or 鹰 .) 莺 traditionally refers to the oriole in Chinese; its use for the sylviid warblers is based on the Japanese family name of the Sylviidae, 鶯科 uguisu-ka, which took its name from the native Japanese Bush Warbler or uguisu (Horornis diphone). The uguisu was long poetically identified as the Japanese equivalent of China's oriole (see 'Of Orioles and Warblers'); hence the use of the character 鶯 to write its name. Use of 莺 for the sylviid warblers in Chinese can be traced back at least to Chinese Birds of 1927 (35), the first ornithological list of Chinese bird names.
Apart from the Locustellidae, the name 莺 is used ornithologically for species in the Acrocephalidae, Aegithalidae, Cisticolidae, Pellorneidae, Phylloscopidae, Regulidae, Scotocercidae, Sylviidae, and Vireonidae.
The Chinese ornithological names of the Sylviidae follow older generic groupings, usually with influence from English or Latin. Locustella now contains species originally belonging to all three genera listed below.
1. Locustella Warblers: 蝗莺 'grasshopper warbler' is based on the scientific name Locustella and the early English name 'grasshopper warblers'. One early suggestion for Locustella (in 35) was 蚂蚻莺 'locust warbler', but 蝗莺 'grasshopper warbler' prevailed for reasons of brevity (it forms the kind of two-character compound word favoured by the Chinese) and tone (蚂蚻 'locust' is decidedly colloquial).
2. Bradypterus Bush Warblers: 短翅莺 'short-winged warbler' is based on the scientific genus name Bradypterus 'short wing'.
3. Megalurus Grassbirds: 大尾莺 'large-tailed warbler' is based on the scientific genus name Megalurus, 'large-tail'.
Species names
SCIENTIFIC & ENGLISH |
CHINESE |
EAST |
SOUTH | NORTH |
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Locustella | ||||||||
Latin |
English |
Chinese |
Chinese (Taiwan) |
Other Ch |
Japanese |
Korean |
Vietnamese |
Mongolian |
Locustella fasciolata |
Gray's warbler Gray's grasshopper-warbler Gray's grasshopper warbler |
苍眉蝗莺 (蒼眉蝗鶯) 'darkblue-eyebrowed grasshopper-warbler' |
(苍眉蝗莺) 蒼眉蝗鶯 'darkblue-eyebrowed grasshopper-warbler' |
黄眉莺 (黃眉鶯) 'yellow-eyebrowed warbler' |
エゾセンニュウ (蝦夷仙入 ~ 蝦夷潜入) ezo sennyū 'Hokkaido grasshopperwarbler' |
붉은허리개개비 bulgeun-heori-gaegaebi 'red-backed reedwarbler' |
Тайгийн шатансүүлт ᠲᠠᠢᠢᠭᠠ ᠵᠢᠨ ᠱᠠᠲᠣᠨ ᠰᠡᠭᠦᠯᠲᠦ taigiŋ shataŋsüült 'taiga ladder-tail' Inner M: Цайвар хөмсөгт царцаахайч ᠴᠠᠢᠢᠪᠣᠷ ᠬᠦᠮᠦᠰᠭᠡᠳᠦ ᠴᠠᠷᠴᠠᠬᠠᠢᠢᠴᠢ tsaivar khömsögt tsartsaakhaich 'whitish-eyebrowed locustlike' (31, 33) |
|
Locustella pryeri Megalurus pryeri |
Japanese swamp warbler Japanese marsh warbler Streak-backed marsh warbler Streak-backed swamp warbler |
斑背大尾莺 (斑背大尾鶯) 'stripe-backed large-tailed warbler' |
オオセッカ (大雪加 ~ 大雪下) ō-sekka 'large cisticola' |
큰개개비 keun-gaegaebi 'large reedwarbler' |
Chim Chiền chiện đầm lầy (Wikipedia) |
Megalurus pryeri: Наран ажиндар ᠨᠠᠷᠠᠨ ᠠᠵᠢᠨᠳᠠᠷ naraŋ ajindar 'Japanese ajindar' Inner M: Бидэр арт сүүллэг ᠪᠢᠳᠡᠷ ᠠᠷᠣᠳᠣ ᠰᠡᠭᠦᠯᠯᠢᠭ bider art süülleg 'stripe-backed large-tail' (31) |
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Locustella certhiola |
Rusty-rumped warbler Pallas's grasshopper-warbler Pallas's grasshopper warbler |
小蝗莺 (小蝗鶯) 'small grasshopper-warbler' |
(小蝗莺) 小蝗鶯 'small grasshopper-warbler' |
シベリアセンニュウ (シベリア仙入 ~ シベリア潜入) shiberia sennyū 'Siberian grasshopperwarbler' |
북방개개비 bukbang-gaegaebi 'northern reedwarbler' |
Chim Chích đầm lầy lớn 'large marsh warbler (bird)' (12) |
Гуймхий шатансүүлт ᠭᠣᠶᠣᠮᠠᠬᠠᠢ ? ᠱᠠᠲᠣᠨ ᠰᠡᠭᠦᠯᠲᠦ guimkhii shataŋ-süült 'guimkhii ladder-tail' Inner M: Бага царцаахайч ᠪᠠᠭᠠ ᠴᠠᠷᠴᠠᠬᠠᠢᠢᠴᠢ bag tsartsaakhaich 'small locustlike' (31, 33) |
|
Locustella ochotensis |
Middendorff's warbler Middendorff's grasshopper-warbler Middendorff's grasshopper warbler |
北蝗莺 (北蝗鶯) 'northern grasshopper-warbler' |
(北蝗莺) 北蝗鶯 'northern grasshopper-warbler' |
花尾莺 (花尾鶯) 'flowery-tailed warbler' |
シマセンニュウ (島仙入 ~ 島潜入) shima sennyū 'island grasshopperwarbler' |
알락꼬리쥐발귀 allak-kkori-jwibalgwi 'spot-tailed warbler' |
Миддэндорфын шатансүүлт ᠮᠢᠳᠳᠧᠨᠳᠣᠷᠹ ᠦᠨ ᠱᠠᠲᠣᠨ ᠰᠡᠭᠦᠯᠲᠦ middendorfiŋ shataŋ-süült 'Middendorf ladder-tail' Inner M: Умарт царцаахайч ᠣᠮᠠᠷᠲᠣ ᠴᠠᠷᠴᠠᠬᠠᠢᠢᠴᠢ umart tsartsaakhaich 'northern locustlike' (33) |
|
Locustella pleskei |
Styan's Warbler Pleske's Warbler Pleske's grasshopper-warbler Styan's grasshopper warbler |
史氏蝗莺 (史氏蝗鶯) 'Mr Shi's grasshopper-warbler' |
(史氏蝗莺) 史氏蝗鶯 'Mr Shi's grasshopper-warbler' |
ウチヤマセンニュウ (内山仙入 or 内山潜入) uchiyama sennyū 'Uchiyama grasshopperwarbler' |
섬개개비 seom-gaegaebi 'island warbler' |
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Latin |
English |
Chinese |
Chinese (Taiwan) |
Other Ch |
Japanese |
Korean |
Vietnamese |
Mongolian |
Locustella lanceolata |
Lanceolated warbler Lanceolated grasshopper warbler |
矛斑蝗莺 (矛斑蝗鶯) 'lance-striped grasshopper-warbler' |
(茅斑蝗莺) 茅斑蝗鶯 'thatch-striped grasshopper-warbler' |
マキノセンニュウ (牧野仙入 ~ 牧野潜入) makino sennyū 'pasture-land grasshopperwarbler' |
쥐발귀개개비 jwibalgwi-gaegaebi 'warbler reedwarbler' |
Chim Chích đầm lầy nhỏ 'small marsh warbler (bird)' (12, 13) |
Бидэрт шатансүүлт ᠪᠢᠳᠡᠷᠲᠦ ᠱᠠᠲᠣᠨ ᠰᠡᠭᠦᠯᠲᠦ bidert shataŋ-süült 'dotted ladder-tail' Inner M: Бидэрт царцаахайч ᠪᠢᠳᠡᠷᠲᠦ ᠴᠠᠷᠴᠠᠬᠠᠢᠢᠴᠢ bidert tsartsaakhaich 'dotted locustlike' (33) |
|
Locustella luscinioides |
Savi's warbler | 鸲蝗莺 (鴝蝗鶯) 'robin grasshopper-warbler' |
ヌマセンニュウ (沼仙入 ~ 沼潜入) numa sennyū 'marsh grasshopperwarbler' |
Шагшуургын шатансүүлт ᠱᠠᠭᠱᠣᠣᠷᠭᠠ ᠵᠢᠨ ᠱᠠᠲᠣᠨ ᠰᠡᠭᠦᠯᠲᠦ shagshuurgiŋ shataŋ-süült 'reed-bed ladder-tail' |
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Locustella luteoventris Bradypterus luteoventris |
Brown bush warbler Brown bush-warbler Russet scrub warbler |
棕褐短翅莺 (柳褐短翅鶯) 'reddishbrown brown short-winged warbler' |
チャイロオウギセッカ (茶色扇雪加 ~ 茶色扇雪下) cha-iro ōgi sekka 'brown fan cisticola' |
Chim Chích bụi rậm nâu 'brown thicket warbler (bird)' (13) Chim Chích ngực vàng 'yellow-breasted warbler (bird)' (12, 34) (Conflicts with Phylloscopus ricketti) |
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Locustella tacsanowskia Bradypterus tacsanowskius |
Chinese bush warbler Chinese bush-warbler Chinese scrub warbler |
中华短翅莺 (中華短翅鶯) 'Chinese short-winged warbler' |
北短翅莺 (北短翅鶯) 'northern short-winged warbler' ' (31) 短翅 (短翅) 'short-wing' |
シベリアオウギセッカ (シベリア扇雪加 ~ シベリア扇雪下) shiberia ōgi sekka 'Siberian fan cisticola' |
Chim Chích ngực hung 'reddish-breasted warbler (bird)' (12, 34) |
Шивэр цоохондой ᠰᠢᠪᠡᠷ ᠴᠣᠣᠬᠣᠨᠳᠠᠢ shiver tsookhondoi 'Siberian bushwarbler' Inner M: Bradypterus tacsanowskius: Сибериан цоохолдой ᠰᠢᠪᠧᠷᠢᠶᠠ ᠵᠢᠨ ᠴᠣᠣᠬᠣᠯᠳᠠᠢ siberiaŋ tsookholdoi 'Siberian bushwarbler1' (33) |
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Locustella major Bradypterus major |
Long-billed bush warbler Long-billed bush-warbler Large-billed bush warbler Large-billed grass warbler |
巨嘴短翅莺 (巨嘴短翅鶯) 'giant-billed short-winged warbler' |
ハシナガオウギセッカ (嘴長扇雪加 ~ 嘴長扇雪下) hashi-naga ōgi sekka 'long-billed fan cisticola' |
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Latin |
English |
Chinese |
Chinese (Taiwan) |
Other Ch |
Japanese |
Korean |
Vietnamese |
Mongolian |
Locustella naevia |
Grasshopper warbler Common grasshopper-warbler Eastern grasshopper warbler |
黑斑蝗莺 (黑斑蝗鶯) 'black-striped grasshopper-warbler' |
ヤチセンニュウ (八千?仙入 ~ 八千?潜入) yachi sennyū 'yachi grasshopperwarbler' |
Эгэл шатансүүлт ᠡᠭᠡᠯ ᠱᠠᠲᠣᠨ ᠰᠡᠭᠦᠯᠲᠦ egel shataŋ-süült 'common ladder-tail' |
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Locustella davidi Bradypterus davidi |
Baikal bush warbler | 北短翅莺 (北短翅鶯) 'northern short-winged warbler' (Avibase) |
シベリアムナフオウギセッカ (シベリア胸斑扇雪加 ~ シベリア喉斑扇雪下) shiberia-muna-fu ōgi sekka 'Siberian stripe-breasted fan cisticola' (Avibase) |
Bradypterus davidi: 점무늬가슴쥐발귀 jeommunui-gaseum-jwibalgwi 'streak-breasted-warbler' |
Chim Chích họng vạch 'line-throated warbler' (12) |
Хурган цоохондой ᠬᠣᠷᠠᠭᠠᠨ ᠴᠣᠣᠬᠣᠨᠳᠠᠢ khurgaŋ tsookhondoi 'lamb bushwarbler' Inner M: Bradypterus thoracicus: Бидэр цээжит цоохолдой ᠪᠢᠳᠡᠷ ᠴᠡᠭᠡᠵᠢᠲᠣ ᠴᠣᠣᠬᠣᠯᠳᠠᠢ bider tseejit tsookholdoi 'stripe-breasted bushwarbler1' (33) |
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Locustella thoracica Bradypterus thoracicus |
Spotted bush warbler Spotted bush-warbler Spotted scrub warbler |
斑胸短翅莺 (斑胸短翅鶯) 'stripe-breasted short-winged warbler' |
ノドフオウギセッカ (喉斑扇雪加 ~ 喉斑扇雪下) nodo-fu ōgi sekka 'stripe-throated fan cisticola' |
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Locustella mandelli Bradypterus mandelli Bradypterus seebohmi Taxonomy |
Russet Bush Warbler Russet Bush-warbler Mountain scrub warbler Mountain bush warbler |
高山短翅莺 (高山短翅鶯) 'high-mountain short-winged warbler' |
褐色枞树莺 (褐色樅樹鶯) 'brown bush warbler' (name formerly in use in Taiwan) |
タイワンオオセッカ (台湾大雪加 ~ 台湾大雪下) taiwan ō sekka 'Taiwan large cisticola' |
Bradypterus seebohmi: Chim Chích nâu đỏ 'red-brown warbler (bird)' (12, 13, 34) |
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Megalurus | ||||||||
Latin |
English |
Chinese |
Chinese (Taiwan) |
Other Ch |
Japanese |
Korean |
Vietnamese |
Mongolian |
Megalurus palustris |
Striated grassbird Striated canegrass warbler Striated marsh warbler |
沼泽大尾莺 (沼澤大尾鶯) 'swamp large-tailed warbler' |
オニセッカ (鬼雪下 ~ 鬼雪加) oni sekka 'ogre cisticola' |
Chim Chiền chiện lớn 'large prinia (bird)' (12, 34) |
セッカ sekka is used in Japanese for several small warbling birds in the Cisticolidae, Locustellidae, and Phylloscopidae. The etymology is unknown. It is written with the ateji 雪加 (literally 'snow-add') or 雪下 (literally 'snow-below'), characters assigned on the basis of sound only with little or no relation to etymology or meaning.
Sennyū, a term for grasshopper-warblers, is of unknown etymology. It is written with characters meaning 'enter fairy' or 'infiltrate'. The characters function as ateji, an attempt to represent the pronunciation with characters that have little or no relationship to the meaning or etymology.
Бор bor as an adjective means either 'grey, brown, dun', or 'stubborn'. It is used in some bird names as a noun, including names for the nightjars, reed warblers, Reed Parrotbill, and leiothrix. The common thread is unclear, and the meaning likely differs according to the bird, with nightjars possibly being regarded as 'stubborn', and others as being 'small brownish birds'.
The name Сүүллэг süülleg means 'large-tailed', related to the word for 'tail' сүүл süül. The name is clearly based on the Chinese name. However, the spelling of the bird name is differentiated from that for 'large-tailed' through doubling of the 'l'.
Харсуун kharsuuŋ or харсун kharsuŋ is found in the names of birds at the Accipitridae, Strigidae, and Sylviidae. The dictionary meaning is 'coarse', 'crude' (e.g. as used of foodstuffs), but in bird naming it appears to have the meaning 'hawk'.
The name гуждахай gujdakhai is found in our source of 'ornithological names' but is not found in any dictionary. The pronunciation is therefore moot. Judging from the script it should be read gujdakhai, but other pronunciations are possible.
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A Complete Checklist of Species and Subspecies of the Chinese Birds (Revised Edition) by Cheng Tso-Hsin, Science Press, Beijing 2000
中国鸟类分类与分布名录 主编:郑光美 科学出版社 北京 2005年
A Checklist on the Classification and Distribution of the Birds of China Chief editor: Zheng Guangmei, Science Press, Beijing 2005
中国鸟类野外手册(中文版)约翰・马敬能、卡伦・菲利普斯,合作者:荷芬奇,翻译:卢和芬 湖南教育出版社 长沙 2000年
A Field Guide to the Birds of China (Chinese translation) by John MacKinnon, Karen Phillipps, in collaboration with He Fen-qi, translated by Lu Hefen, Hunan Jiaoyu Chubanshe (Hunan Educational Press) Changsha 2000
世界鸟类分类与分布名录 主编:郑光美 科学出版社 北京 2002年
A Checklist on the Classification and Distribution of the Birds of the World Chief editor: Zheng Guangmei, Science Press, Beijing 2002
世界鸟类名称(拉丁文、汉文、英文对照)第二版 郑作新等 科学出版社 北京 2002年
Birds of the World (Latin, Chinese and English Names) 2nd ed. by Cheng Tso-Hsin et al, Science Press, Beijing 2002
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香港及華南鳥類(第六版)(翻譯成中文及重新修訂) 尹璉、費嘉倫、林超英 香港性徵特區政府新聞處政府印務局 1994年
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Danh Lục Chim Việt Nam (In lần thứ hai) (Checklist of the Birds of Vietnam) Võ Quý, Nguyễn Cử, Nhà Xuất Bản Nông Nghiệp, Hà Nội 1999
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Chim Việt Nam Nguyễn Cử, Lê Trọng Trải, Karen Phillipps; Nhà Xuất Bản Lao Động - Xã Hội, 2000
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Danh Lục Các Loài Chim ở Việt Nam (Latinh, Việt, Pháp, Hán) Trần Văn Chánh 2008-2009
Chinese Birds (A Tentative List of Chinese Birds) 中國鳥類(中國鳥類目錄試編) N. Gist Gee, Lacy I. Moffett, G. D. Wilder (祁天錫, 慕維德, 萬卓志), Peiping, 1927 (reprinted 1948)
中国观鸟年报-中国鸟类名录 1.1 (The CBR Checklist of Birds of China v1.1)中国观鸟年报 (China Bird Review), 2010 ()