Definitions

líng mud carp (Cirrhina molitorella)

Etymology phono-semantic

fish

Semantic: Phonetic:

About

is the Chinese character for the mud carp, a freshwater fish widely farmed and consumed in southern China, particularly in Guangdong province. A typical phono-semantic compound, it uses the fish radical (traditional form ) on the left to indicate the fish category, and the component on the right to suggest the pronunciation 'líng', while its original 'hill' meaning is irrelevant. In contemporary usage, is primarily found in regional culinary contexts, aquaculture descriptions, and ingredient lists for popular southern dishes such as canned fried dace with salted black beans.