kowtow
Sign in to saveA kowtow (), also spelled kaotao (), is the act of deep respect shown by prostration, that is, kneeling and bowing so low as to have one's head touching the ground. It was commonly used in religious worship which emphasizes its emotional depth, sincerity, and willing submission. In Sinospheric culture, the kowtow is the highest sign of reverence. It was widely used to show reverence for one's elders, superiors, and especially the Emperor of China, as well as for religious and cultural objects of worship.
Key facts
- Chinese.j
- kau3 tau4
- Chinese.pic
- Song Kowtowing Civil Official (9930085596).jpg
- Chinese.picsize
- 250px
- Chinese.piccap
- Pottery figure of a kowtowing official, Song Dynasty
- Chinese.l
- knock head, touch head
- Chinese.t
- 叩頭
- Chinese.t2
- 磕頭
- Chinese.s
- 叩头
- Chinese.s2
- 磕头
- Chinese.p
- kòutóu
- Chinese.p2
- kētóu
- Chinese.j2
- hap6 tau4 (rare)
- Chinese.wuu
- (not used)
- Chinese.poj
- khàu-thâu
- Chinese.poj2
- kha̍p-thâu
- Chinese.phfs
- khieu-thèu
- Chinese.phfs2
- kha̍p-thèu (rare)
- Chinese.kanji
- 叩頭 or 磕頭(noun); 叩頭く (verb)
via Wikipedia infobox
~10 min read
Encyclopedic overview
11 sectionsContents
- Terminology
- Traditional usage
- Modern Chinese usage
- Religion
- Diplomacy
- See also
- Notes
- References
- Citations
- Sources
- External links
A kowtow (), also spelled kaotao (), is the act of deep respect shown by prostration, that is, kneeling and bowing so low as to have one's head touching the ground. It was commonly used in religious worship which emphasizes its emotional depth, sincerity, and willing submission. In Sinospheric culture, the kowtow is the highest sign of reverence. It was widely used to show reverence for one's elders, superiors, and especially the Emperor of China, as well as for religious and cultural objects of worship.
==Terminology== The word kowtow is derived from the Cantonese pronunciation of / (). An alternative Chinese term is / (); however, the meaning is somewhat altered: has the general meaning of knock, whereas has the general meaning of "touch upon (a surface)", / meaning head. The date of this custom's origin is probably sometime during the Spring and Autumn period or the Warring States period of China's history (771–221 BC), because it was a custom by the time of the Qin dynasty (221–206 BC).
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “kowtow” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.