English
foo dog
Foo dog may come from Mandarin 福 ‘good fortune’.
- Mandarinmodern福fú‘good fortune’uncertain
- Englishearliest quotation 1916foo dog
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Mandarinmodern福fú‘good fortune’uncertain
- Englishearliest quotation 1916foo dog
Earliest quotation: 1916, John Kimberly Mumford, Chinese Rugs: “Passing to the central medallion, yet a new element…”
The story
There is no similar word in Chinese itself that uses the word 福 (fú), but see English foo and Foo.
Every English word from Mandarin 福
Today it means
noun A stylized lion statue similar to those usually placed in male and female pairs outside imperial Chinese palaces, tombs, temples, etc.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Mandarin 福 / foo dog