The term **野人** (yěrén) is a compound word formed by combining the character **野** (yě), meaning "wild," "uncivilized," or "open country," with **人** (rén), meaning "person" or "human." Literally, it translates to "wild person," and it functions as a conceptual compound where the first character modifies the second. Historically and in folklore, it refers to a mythical, ape-like creature or "wild man" of the mountains, similar to the Yeti or Bigfoot, but it can also be used metaphorically to describe a person who is uncouth, barbaric, or uncivilized in behavior. The formation thus relies on the descriptive-modifier structure common in Chinese, where "野" specifies the type of "人."