tsov

White Hmong

Etymology

From Proto-Hmong *tsjoᴮ (“tiger”), borrowed from Middle Chinese 祖 (MC tsuX, “ancestor”). The semantic shift from "ancestor" > "tiger" comes from the traditional Southeast Asian association and addressing of tigers as ancestors.[1]

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /t͡ʂɒ˧˦/

Noun

tsov (classifier: tus)

  1. tiger

Derived terms
  • tsov cuam (“a legendary tiger, reportedly small, swift, and with a human face”)
  • tsov dub (“black panther”)
  • tsov nplooj suab (“Bengal tiger”)
  • tsov ntxhuav (“lion”)
  • tsov pom teev (“leopard”)
  • tsov txaij (“leopard”)

References
  • Heimbach, Ernest E. (1979) White Hmong — English Dictionary‎, SEAP Publications, →ISBN, page 355.
  1. Ratliff, Martha (2010) Hmong-Mien language history (Studies in Language Change; 8), Camberra, Australia: Pacific Linguistics, →ISBN, page 74; 284.
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