狻猊

The (legendary) beast was mentioned in the ancient Chinese glossary Erya as 狻麑, a "devourer of tigers and leopards". It was also attested in the Mu Tianzi Zhuan (nominally from the Warring States period; however the textual history of the book was problematic). If correctly identified as a legendary account of the lion as later texts do, it may be a (partial) borrowing, possibly from a historical Iranian or Indo-Iranian language.

The use of 狻猊 (OC *swar ŋe) possibly predates that of 獅 (OC *sri, “lion”). Compare Proto-Indo-Iranian *sinȷ́ʰás (“lion”) or less likely Proto-Indo-Iranian *ćárguš.

狻猊

1. (archaic) lion

   • 狻麑，如虦貓，食虎豹。 [Traditional Chinese poetry, trad.]
     狻麑，如𰲠猫，食虎豹。 [Traditional Chinese poetry, simp.]

     From: Erya, 5^th – 2^nd century BCE

     Suānní, rú zhànmāo, shí hǔbào. [Pinyin]

     The lions look like tawny cats; they eat tigers and leopards.

   • 狻猊□野馬走五百里。 [Traditional Chinese poetry, trad.]
     狻猊□野马走五百里。 [Traditional Chinese poetry, simp.]

     From: The Tale of King Mu, Son of Heaven, c. 370 – 330 BCE

     Suānní □ yěmǎ zǒu wǔbǎi lǐ. [Pinyin]

     Lions [and?] wild horses run 500 li [a day].

2. (Chinese mythology) mythological creature which is said to be a hybrid of lion and dragon, one of the nine sons of the dragon; said to either like to smoke and decorate incense burners, or like to sit down and decorate the thrones of Buddha statues

• ("sons of the dragon", creatures found in decorations): 贔屭 / 赑屃 (bìxì), 霸下 (bàxià), 𧈢𧏡 (bàxià), 螭虎 (chīhǔ), 饕餮 (tāotiè), 蜥蜴 (xīyì), 睚眥 / 睚眦 (yázì), 鴟吻 / 鸱吻 (chīwěn), 虭蛥 (diāoshé), 嘲風 / 嘲风 (cháofēng), 蒲牢 (púláo), 狴犴 (bì'àn), 椒圖 / 椒图 (jiāotú), 金吾 (jīnwú), 囚牛 (qiúniú)

• Behr, Wolfgang. "Hinc sunt leones – two ancient Eurasian migratory terms in Chinese revisited (I-II)". International Jour­nal of Central Asian Studies. Volume 9, 2004, pp. 1-25; Volume 10, 2005, pp. 1-22.

Literary Chinese 狻猊 (suānní)

• IPA^(key): [sã̠ŋɡe̞ː]

• (Tokyo) しゅんげー [shùńgéé] (Heiban – [0])
• IPA^(key): [ɕɨ̃ŋɡe̞ː]

狻(さん)猊(げい) or 狻(しゅん)猊(げい) • (sangei or shungei) 

1. (Chinese mythology) a suanni, a cross between a dragon and a lion
2. (loosely, rare) synonym of 獅子 (shishi, “lion”)

狻(さん)猊(げい) or 狻(しゅん)猊(げい) • (Sangei or Shungei) 

1. (Chinese mythology) the suanni that was one of the nine sons of the dragon

• 猊(げい)下(か) (geika)
• 猊(げい)座(ざ) (geiza)