人民

Chinese

		man; person; people	the people; nationality; citizen
simp. and trad. (人民)		人	民
anagram		民人

Etymology

Attestable in pre-Qin texts as a term meaning "common people". Modern sense first attested in An English and Chinese dictionary published in 1884 by W. Lobscheid.

Pronunciation

Mandarin
(Standard)
(Pinyin): rénmín

(Zhuyin): ㄖㄣˊ ㄇㄧㄣˊ

(Chengdu, Sichuanese Pinyin): ren² min²

(Dungan, Cyrillic and Wiktionary): жынмин (řɨnmin, I-I)
Cantonese
(Guangzhou–Hong Kong, Jyutping): jan⁴ man⁴

(Taishan, Wiktionary): ngin³ min³
Gan (Wiktionary): liin⁴ min⁴
Hakka
(Sixian, PFS): ngìn-mìn

(Meixian, Guangdong): ngin² min²
Jin (Wiktionary): zeng¹ ming¹
Northern Min (KCR): nêng-měng
Eastern Min (BUC): ìng-mìng
Puxian Min (Pouseng Ping'ing): zing² ming²
Southern Min
(Hokkien, POJ): lîn-bîn / jîn-bîn

(Teochew, Peng'im): ring⁵ ming⁵ / nang⁵ ming⁵
Wu (Shanghai, Wugniu): ⁶zen-min₆
Xiang (Changsha, Wiktionary): ren² min²

Mandarin
- (Standard Chinese)⁺
  - Hanyu Pinyin: rénmín
  - Zhuyin: ㄖㄣˊ ㄇㄧㄣˊ
  - Tongyong Pinyin: rénmín
  - Wade–Giles: jên²-min²
  - Yale: rén-mín
  - Gwoyeu Romatzyh: renmin
  - Palladius: жэньминь (žɛnʹminʹ)
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /ʐən³⁵ min³⁵/
- (Chengdu)
  - Sichuanese Pinyin: ren² min²
  - Scuanxua Ladinxua Xin Wenz: rhenmin
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /zən²¹ min²¹/
- (Dungan)
  - Cyrillic and Wiktionary: жынмин (řɨnmin, I-I)
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /ʐəŋ²⁴ miŋ²⁴/
  (Note: Dungan pronunciation is currently experimental and may be inaccurate.)
Cantonese
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)
  - Jyutping: jan⁴ man⁴
  - Yale: yàhn màhn
  - Cantonese Pinyin: jan⁴ man⁴
  - Guangdong Romanization: yen⁴ men⁴
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /jɐn²¹ mɐn²¹/
  - Homophones:
    ^edit
    ^edit
    人文
    人民
- (Taishanese, Taicheng)
  - Wiktionary: ngin³ min³
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /ᵑɡin²² ᵐbin²²/
Gan
- (Nanchang)
  - Wiktionary: liin⁴ min⁴
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /lɨn³⁵ min³⁵/
Hakka
- (Sixian, incl. Miaoli and Neipu)
  - Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: ngìn-mìn
  - Hakka Romanization System: ngin^ˇ min^ˇ
  - Hagfa Pinyim: ngin² min²
  - Sinological IPA: /ŋin¹¹ min¹¹/
- (Meixian)
  - Guangdong: ngin² min²
  - Sinological IPA: /ŋin¹¹ min¹¹/
Jin
- (Taiyuan)⁺
  - Wiktionary: zeng¹ ming¹
  - Sinological IPA (old-style): /t͡səŋ¹¹ miŋ¹¹/
Northern Min
- (Jian'ou)
  - Kienning Colloquial Romanized: nêng-měng
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /neiŋ³³ meiŋ²¹/
Eastern Min
- (Fuzhou)
  - Bàng-uâ-cê: ìng-mìng
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /iŋ⁵³⁻³³ miŋ⁵³/
Puxian Min
- (Putian, Xianyou)
  - Pouseng Ping'ing: zing² ming² [Phonetic: zing⁵ ming²]
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /t͡siŋ¹³⁻²¹ miŋ¹³/
Southern Min
- (Hokkien: Xiamen, Quanzhou, Taipei, Jinjiang, Philippines)
  - Pe̍h-ōe-jī: lîn-bîn
  - Tâi-lô: lîn-bîn
  - Phofsit Daibuun: linbiin
  - IPA (Taipei): /lin²⁴⁻¹¹ bin²⁴/
  - IPA (Xiamen, Quanzhou, Jinjiang, Philippines): /lin²⁴⁻²² bin²⁴/
- (Hokkien: Zhangzhou, Kaohsiung)
  - Pe̍h-ōe-jī: jîn-bîn
  - Tâi-lô: jîn-bîn
  - Phofsit Daibuun: jinbiin
  - IPA (Kaohsiung): /zin²³⁻³³ bin²³/
  - IPA (Zhangzhou): /d͡zin¹³⁻²² bin¹³/
- (Teochew)
  - Peng'im: ring⁵ ming⁵ / nang⁵ ming⁵
  - Pe̍h-ōe-jī-like: jîng mîng / nâng mîng
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /d͡ziŋ⁵⁵⁻¹¹ miŋ⁵⁵/, /naŋ⁵⁵⁻¹¹ miŋ⁵⁵/
Wu
- (Northern: Shanghai)
  - Wugniu: ⁶zen-min₆
  - MiniDict: zen^去 min^去
  - Wiktionary Romanisation (Shanghai): ³zen-min₃
  - Sinological IPA (Shanghai): /zən²² min⁴⁴/
Xiang
- (Changsha)
  - Wiktionary: ren² min²
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /ʐən¹³ min¹³/

Middle Chinese: nyin mjin

Rime
Character	人	民
Reading #	1/1	1/1
Initial (聲)	日 (38)	明 (4)
Final (韻)	眞 (43)	眞 (43)
Tone (調)	Level (Ø)	Level (Ø)
Openness (開合)	Open	Open
Division (等)	III	III
Fanqie	如鄰切	彌鄰切
Baxter	nyin	mjin
Reconstructions
Zhengzhang Shangfang	/ȵiɪn/	/miɪn/
Pan Wuyun	/ȵin/	/min/
Shao Rongfen	/ȵʑjen/	/mjen/
Edwin Pulleyblank	/ȵin/	/min/
Li Rong	/ȵiĕn/	/miĕn/
Wang Li	/ȵʑĭĕn/	/mĭĕn/
Bernhard Karlgren	/ȵʑi̯ĕn/	/mi̯ĕn/
Expected Mandarin Reflex	rén	mín
Expected Cantonese Reflex	jan⁴	man⁴

Old Chinese
(Baxter–Sagart): /*ni[ŋ] mi[ŋ]/

(Zhengzhang): /*njin min/

Baxter–Sagart system 1.1 (2014)
Character	人	民
Reading #	1/1	1/1
Modern Beijing (Pinyin)	rén	mín
Middle Chinese	‹ nyin ›	‹ mjin ›
Old Chinese	/*ni[ŋ]/	/*mi[ŋ]/
English	(other) person	people
Notes for Old Chinese notations in the Baxter–Sagart system: * Parentheses "()" indicate uncertain presence; * Square brackets "[]" indicate uncertain identity, e.g. [t] as coda may in fact be -t or -p; Angle brackets "<>" indicate infix; * Hyphen "-" indicates morpheme boundary; * Period "." indicates syllable boundary.

Zhengzhang system (2003)
Character	人	民
Reading #	1/1	1/1
No.	10800	9130
Phonetic component	人	民
Rime group	眞	眞
Rime subdivision	1	1
Corresponding MC rime	仁	民
Old Chinese	/*njin/	/*min/

Noun

人民

people (collectively, as members of society)
熱愛人民／热爱人民 ― rè'ài rénmín ― to love the people

人民民主專政／人民民主专政 ― rénmín mínzhǔ zhuānzhèng ― people's democratic dictatorship

全過程人民民主／全过程人民民主 ― quán guòchéng rénmín mínzhǔ ― whole-process people's democracy

人民生活步步高 ― rénmín shēnghuó bùbùgāo ― the lives of the people improve step by step

科技應為人民利益服務。 [MSC, trad.]
科技应为人民利益服务。 [MSC, simp.]
Kējì yīng wèi rénmín lìyì fúwù. [Pinyin]
Science and technology should work for the good of the people.

中國人民政治協商會議 [MSC, trad.]
中国人民政治协商会议 [MSC, simp.]
Zhōngguó rénmín zhèngzhì xiéshāng huìyì [Pinyin]
Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference
- 孟子曰：「諸侯之寶三：土地、人民、政事。寶珠玉者，殃必及身。」 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
  孟子曰：「诸侯之宝三：土地、人民、政事。宝珠玉者，殃必及身。」 [Classical Chinese, simp.]
  From: Mencius, c. 4^th century BCE
  Mèngzǐ yuē: “Zhūhóu zhī bǎo sān: tǔdì, rénmín, zhèngshì. Bǎo zhūyù zhě, yāng bì jíshēn.” [Pinyin]
  Mencius said, 'The precious things of a prince are three: the territory, the people, the government and its business. If one value as most precious pearls and jade, calamity is sure to befall him.'
humanity; humans (as a collective); humankind; the human race

Usage notes

人民 (rénmín) can only refer to people collectively, as a unit. To refer to people as individually countable persons, use 人 (rén). To refer to people in an otherwise general sense, use 人們／人们 (rénmen).

Synonyms

(people):

edit

一般人 (yībānrén)
世人 (shìrén)
世間人／世间人 (Hokkien)
人士 (rénshì) (literary)
人群 (rénqún)
人萌 (rénméng) (literary)
俗人 (súrén)
俗子 (súzǐ) (literary)
𫣆人 (Hakka)
兆民 (zhàomín) (archaic)
公眾／公众 (gōngzhòng)
凡人 (fánrén)
凡夫 (fánfū) (literary)
匹夫 (pǐfū) (literary)
四眾人／四众人 (si³ zing³ nang⁵) (Teochew)
士人 (shìrén) (archaic)
大眾／大众 (dàzhòng)
子民 (zǐmín) (historical)
家人 (jiārén) (archaic)
布衣 (bùyī) (historical)
常人 (chángrén)
平人 (píngrén) (literary)
平常人 (píngchángrén)
平民 (píngmín)
庶人 (shùrén) (literary)
庶民 (shùmín) (literary)
斯人 (sīrén) (Classical Chinese)
普通人 (pǔtōngrén)
民人 (mínrén) (literary)
民眾／民众 (mínzhòng)
烝民 (zhēngmín) (literary)
烝黎 (zhēnglí) (Classical Chinese)
白衣 (báiyī) (historical)
白衣人 (báiyīrén) (historical)
白身 (báishēn) (archaic)
白身人 (báishēnrén) (archaic)
百姓
眾人／众人 (zhòngrén) (literary)
萬姓／万姓 (wànxìng) (archaic)
群眾／群众 (qúnzhòng)
老百姓 (lǎobǎixìng)
良人 (liángrén) (literary)
草民 (cǎomín) (the worthless ordinary people)
草菅 (cǎojiān) (Classical Chinese, figurative)
草野 (cǎoyě) (literary, figurative)
萌 (literary)
野人 (yěrén) (archaic)
黎庶 (líshù) (literary)
黎民 (límín) (literary)
黎首 (líshǒu) (archaic)
黔首 (qiánshǒu) (archaic)
黔黎 (archaic)

(humanity): 人類／人类 (rénlèi)

Derived terms

中國人民解放軍／中国人民解放军 (Zhōngguó Rénmín Jiěfàngjūn)
人民代表 (rénmín dàibiǎo)
人民內部矛盾／人民内部矛盾 (rénmín nèibù máodùn)
人民公社 (rénmín gōngshè)
人民共和國／人民共和国 (rénmín gònghéguó)
人民團體／人民团体 (rénmín tuántǐ)
人民幣／人民币 (rénmínbì)
人民性 (rénmínxìng)
人民戰爭／人民战争 (rénmín zhànzhēng)
人民政府 (rénmín zhèngfǔ)
人民檢察院／人民检察院 (rénmín jiǎncháyuàn)
人民警察 (rénmín jǐngchá)
傷害14億人民感情／伤害14亿人民感情 (shānghài shísì yì rénmín gǎnqíng)
傷害中國人民的感情／伤害中国人民的感情 (shānghài Zhōngguó rénmín de gǎnqíng)
勞動人民／劳动人民 (láodòng rénmín)

Descendants

Sino-Xenic (人民):

→ Japanese: 人民(じんみん) (jinmin)
→ Korean: 인민(人民) (inmin)
→ Vietnamese: nhân dân (人民)

Others:

→ Manchu: ᠨᡳᠶ᠋ᠠᠯᠮᠠ
ᡳᡵᡤᡝᠨ (niyalma irgen) (calque)
→ Zhuang: yinzminz

Japanese

Kanji in this term
人	民
じん Grade: 1	みん Grade: 4
on'yomi

Etymology

From Middle Chinese compound 人民 (MC nyin mjin). Compare modern Mandarin 人民 (rénmín), Wu 人民 (⁶zen-min₆), Min Nan 人民 (jîn-bîn).

Formerly pronounced with a consistent 呉音 (goon) reading of ninmin, later changing to a mixed 漢音 (kan'on) / 呉音 (goon) reading of jinmin.^[1]^[2]

Pronunciation

(Tokyo) じんみん [jìńmíꜜǹ] (Nakadaka – [3])^[2]
IPA^(key): [d͡ʑĩmʲːĩɴ]

Noun

人(じん)民(みん) • (jinmin)

the people, the general public, the citizens

Synonyms

(people of a nation): 国民(こくみん) (kokumin)

Derived terms

人民委員(じんみんいいん) (jinmin iin): commissar (of the former Soviet Union)
人民委員会(じんみんいいんかい) (jinmin iinkai): commissariat (of the former Soviet Union)
人民解放軍(じんみんかいほうぐん) (Jinmin Kaihō Gun): the People's Liberation Army (PLA) (of China)
人民憲章(じんみんけんしょう) (Jinmin Kenshō): the People's Charter (as established in 1838 in the UK)
人民公社(じんみんこうしゃ) (jinmin kōsha): a people's commune (in China)
人民裁判(じんみんさいばん) (jinmin saiban): a people's court
人民主義(じんみんしゅぎ) (jinmin shugi): populism
人民主権(じんみんしゅけん) (jinmin shuken): popular sovereignty, the idea that sovereignty resides in the people
人民戦線(じんみんせんせん) (jinmin sensen): a popular front (as in the name of a group or organization)
人民大会堂(じんみんだいかいどう) (Jinmin Dai Kaidō): the Great Hall of the People (in Beijing)
人民投票(じんみんとうひょう) (jinmin tōhyō): a national referendum, a vote by the people of a nation
人民日報(じんみんにっぽう) (Jinmin Nippō): the People's Daily, the state media of Beijing
人民服(じんみんふく) (jinmin fuku): the “people's clothes” → a Mao suit
人民民主主義(じんみんみんしゅしゅぎ) (jinmin minshushugi): people's democracy

References

^ Shōgaku Tosho (1988) 国語大辞典（新装版） [Unabridged Dictionary of Japanese (Revised Edition)] (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan, →ISBN
↑ ^2.0 ^2.1 Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN

Korean

Hanja in this term
人	民

Noun

人民 • (inmin) (hangeul 인민)

hanja form^? of 인민 (“the people (of a country), citizens”)

Vietnamese

chữ Hán Nôm in this term
人	民

Noun

人民

chữ Hán form of nhân dân (“people”).

[KDJ-1] Shōgaku Tosho (1988) 国語大辞典（新装版） [Unabridged Dictionary of Japanese (Revised Edition)] (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan, →ISBN

[DJR-2] 2.0 ^2.1 Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN

[1]

[2]

人民

Contents

Chinese

Etymology

Pronunciation

Noun

Usage notes

Synonyms

Derived terms

Descendants

See also

Japanese

Etymology

Pronunciation

Noun

Synonyms

Derived terms

References

Korean

Noun

Vietnamese

Noun