FROM SIAM TO GUANGDONG AND MACAO : A NOTE ON THE MONGOOSE IN MING AND QING SOURCES從暹邏到廣東和澳門：明清資料中對貓鼬的記錄
The article proposes a philological and historiographic reading of references to the “mongoose” (menggui 蒙貴/蒙貴 with variable characters) in Chinese sources from the Ming and Qing periods, focusing on the circulation of descriptions between Siam (Xianluo 暹羅), Guangdong, and Macau. Drawing on informat...
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| Published in: | Review of Culture |
|---|---|
| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Articles |
| Published: |
Instituto Cultural de Macau
July 2011
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.icm.gov.mo/rc/viewer/pdfViewerParts/40039/3137 |
| _version_ | 1877196270408302592 |
|---|---|
| author | Roderich Ptak |
| author_autocomplete | Roderich Ptak |
| author_browse | Roderich Ptak |
| author_facet | Roderich Ptak Roderich Ptak |
| author_sort | Roderich Ptak |
| container_title | Review of Culture |
| container_title_str | Review of Culture |
| container_volume | 39 |
| container_volume_str | 39 |
| description | The article proposes a philological and historiographic reading of references to the “mongoose” (menggui 蒙貴/蒙貴 with variable characters) in Chinese sources from the Ming and Qing periods, focusing on the circulation of descriptions between Siam (Xianluo 暹羅), Guangdong, and Macau. Drawing on information from the *Aomen jilüe* 澳門記略 (1751), the author observes that the characterization of the animal—resemblance to a cat, long legs, hairy tail, three color varieties, and utility in rat hunting—also appears with remarkable proximity in Qu Dajun (*Guangdong xinyu* 廣東新語, c. 1700). The methodology consists of comparing entries and descriptive sequences across relevant compilations and treatises, including the *Guangdong tongzhi*, *Tong ya* (1636/1666), *Nan Yue biji*, and above all, the *Hai yu* 海語 by Huang Zhong (1536), which explicitly links the animal to “Thailand” and records lexical variants such as *mengju*/muɐkœy. The main conclusions indicate that the “Siam–Guangdong–Macau” constellation does not derive from a simple episodic importation, but from a long duration of circulation of animals and zoological knowledge, mediated by compilatory practices and phonetic correspondences with southern traditions. Thus, the article suggests that “exoticisms” in Macau reflect networks of textual and commercial transmission, rather than merely local observation or narrative intent. |
| first_indexed | 2026-09-11T02:56:57Z |
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| issn | 1682-1106 |
| last_indexed | 2026-09-11T02:56:57Z |
| latest_content_date | 2026-09-11T02:56:57Z |
| publishDate | July 2011 |
| publishDateRange | 2011 |
| publishDateSort | 2011 |
| publishPlace | Macau |
| publisher | Instituto Cultural de Macau |
| publisherStr | Instituto Cultural de Macau |
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| spelling | FROM SIAM TO GUANGDONG AND MACAO : A NOTE ON THE MONGOOSE IN MING AND QING SOURCES從暹邏到廣東和澳門：明清資料中對貓鼬的記錄 The article proposes a philological and historiographic reading of references to the “mongoose” (menggui 蒙貴/蒙貴 with variable characters) in Chinese sources from the Ming and Qing periods, focusing on the circulation of descriptions between Siam (Xianluo 暹羅), Guangdong, and Macau. Drawing on information from the *Aomen jilüe* 澳門記略 (1751), the author observes that the characterization of the animal—resemblance to a cat, long legs, hairy tail, three color varieties, and utility in rat hunting—also appears with remarkable proximity in Qu Dajun (*Guangdong xinyu* 廣東新語, c. 1700). The methodology consists of comparing entries and descriptive sequences across relevant compilations and treatises, including the *Guangdong tongzhi*, *Tong ya* (1636/1666), *Nan Yue biji*, and above all, the *Hai yu* 海語 by Huang Zhong (1536), which explicitly links the animal to “Thailand” and records lexical variants such as *mengju*/muɐkœy. The main conclusions indicate that the “Siam–Guangdong–Macau” constellation does not derive from a simple episodic importation, but from a long duration of circulation of animals and zoological knowledge, mediated by compilatory practices and phonetic correspondences with southern traditions. Thus, the article suggests that “exoticisms” in Macau reflect networks of textual and commercial transmission, rather than merely local observation or narrative intent. Instituto Cultural de Macau Macau Review of Culture Articles July 2011 Roderich Ptak |
| spellingShingle | FROM SIAM TO GUANGDONG AND MACAO : A NOTE ON THE MONGOOSE IN MING AND QING SOURCES從暹邏到廣東和澳門：明清資料中對貓鼬的記錄 Roderich Ptak |
| title | FROM SIAM TO GUANGDONG AND MACAO : A NOTE ON THE MONGOOSE IN MING AND QING SOURCES從暹邏到廣東和澳門：明清資料中對貓鼬的記錄 |
| title_autocomplete | FROM SIAM TO GUANGDONG AND MACAO : A NOTE ON THE MONGOOSE IN MING AND QING SOURCES從暹邏到廣東和澳門：明清資料中對貓鼬的記錄 |
| title_full | FROM SIAM TO GUANGDONG AND MACAO : A NOTE ON THE MONGOOSE IN MING AND QING SOURCES從暹邏到廣東和澳門：明清資料中對貓鼬的記錄 |
| title_fullStr | FROM SIAM TO GUANGDONG AND MACAO : A NOTE ON THE MONGOOSE IN MING AND QING SOURCES從暹邏到廣東和澳門：明清資料中對貓鼬的記錄 |
| title_full_unstemmed | FROM SIAM TO GUANGDONG AND MACAO : A NOTE ON THE MONGOOSE IN MING AND QING SOURCES從暹邏到廣東和澳門：明清資料中對貓鼬的記錄 |
| title_short | FROM SIAM TO GUANGDONG AND MACAO : A NOTE ON THE MONGOOSE IN MING AND QING SOURCES從暹邏到廣東和澳門：明清資料中對貓鼬的記錄 |
| title_sort | from siam to guangdong and macao : a note on the mongoose in ming and qing sources從暹邏到廣東和澳門：明清資料中對貓鼬的記錄 |
| url | https://www.icm.gov.mo/rc/viewer/pdfViewerParts/40039/3137 |
| zotero_collection_key | 76L3BRGH |