Laozi

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. An ancient Chinese philosopher traditionally credited with founding Taoism and authoring the foundational text known as the Tao Te Ching, emphasizing naturalness, simplicity, and harmony
2. A seminal figure in Chinese thought regarded as the sage who articulated the principles of the Way and Virtue through the Tao Te Ching, advocating for balance and effortless action
3. The reputed ancient sage attributed with creating foundational Taoist philosophy and writing a key text that explores the nature of existence and the importance of aligning with the natural order

Etymology: Laozi is a name built from two Chinese characters, 老 (lǎo), meaning "old," and 子 (zǐ), a respectful title meaning "master" or "sage," so the name can be read as "the Old Master" or "the Venerable One." The Hanyu Pinyin spelling is the modern romanization used in mainland China and most of the world, and it replaced older systems such as Wade-Giles, which spelled the same name "Lao-tzu." That older spelling is why many English books still use it, and the two forms refer to the same figure. The English word is therefore a transliteration rather than a translation, meaning it reproduces the Chinese sound in Latin letters instead of translating its meaning. The name appears in this glossary-style form in Western reference works in the twentieth century, when Pinyin and Wade-Giles were competing systems for transcribing Mandarin.

Synonyms: lao tzu, old master