白熊

Chinese

		white; empty; blank white; empty; blank; bright; clear; plain; pure; gratuitous	bear; to scold; to rebuke
trad. (白熊)		白	熊
simp. ^#(白熊)		白	熊
Literally: “white bear”.

Etymology

Compare Japanese 白熊 (shirokuma), Korean 흰곰 (huin'gom), Vietnamese gấu trắng, all of which literally means “white bear”.

Pronunciation

Mandarin
(Pinyin): báixióng

(Zhuyin): ㄅㄞˊ ㄒㄩㄥˊ
Cantonese (Jyutping): baak⁶ hung⁴
Southern Min (Hokkien, POJ): pe̍h-hîm / pe̍eh-hîm

Mandarin
- (Standard Chinese)⁺
  - Hanyu Pinyin: báixióng
  - Zhuyin: ㄅㄞˊ ㄒㄩㄥˊ
  - Tongyong Pinyin: báisyóng
  - Wade–Giles: pai²-hsiung²
  - Yale: bái-syúng
  - Gwoyeu Romatzyh: bairshyong
  - Palladius: байсюн (bajsjun)
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /paɪ̯³⁵ ɕi̯ʊŋ³⁵/
Cantonese
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
  - Jyutping: baak⁶ hung⁴
  - Yale: baahk hùhng
  - Cantonese Pinyin: baak⁹ hung⁴
  - Guangdong Romanization: bag⁶ hung⁴
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /paːk̚² hʊŋ²¹/
Southern Min
- (Hokkien: General Taiwanese, Quanzhou, Xiamen)
  - Pe̍h-ōe-jī: pe̍h-hîm
  - Tâi-lô: pe̍h-hîm
  - Phofsit Daibuun: peqhiim
  - IPA (Quanzhou): /pe(ʔ)²⁴⁻² him²⁴/
  - IPA (Kaohsiung): /pe(ʔ)⁴⁻²¹ him²³/
  - IPA (Xiamen): /pe(ʔ)⁴⁻²¹ him²⁴/
  - IPA (Taipei): /pe(ʔ)⁴⁻¹¹ him²⁴/
- (Hokkien: Zhangzhou)
  - Pe̍h-ōe-jī: pe̍eh-hîm
  - Tâi-lô: pe̍eh-hîm
  - IPA (Zhangzhou): /pɛ(ʔ)¹²¹⁻²¹ him¹³/

Noun

白熊

polar bear

Synonyms

北極熊／北极熊 (běijíxióng)

Japanese

Kanji in this term
白	熊
しろ Grade: 1	くま Grade: 4
kun'yomi

Etymology

From 白 (shiro, “white”) +‎ 熊 (kuma, “bear”).^[1]^[2] Compare Chinese 白熊 (báixióng), Korean 흰곰 (huin'gom), Vietnamese gấu trắng, all of which literally mean “white bear”.

Pronunciation

(Tokyo) しろくま [shìrókúmá] (Heiban – [0])^[2]
IPA^(key): [ɕiɾo̞kɯ̟ma̠]

Noun

白(しろ)熊(くま) or 白熊(シロクマ) • (shirokuma)

synonym of 北極熊 (Hokkyokuguma, “polar bear”)
- 1990 June 15, Rumiko Takahashi, “PART(パート).５(ご)　秘(ひ)伝(でん)書(しょ)を奪(うば)え [Part 5: Snatching the Scroll of Secrets]”, in らんま½ [Ranma ½], volume 11 (fiction), Tokyo: Shogakukan, →ISBN, page 72:
  
  日(にっ)本(ぽん)の山(さん)中(ちゅう)に…シロクマがいるか—————っ‼
  Nippon no sanchū ni… shirokuma ga iru ka—————'‼
  Why is there… a polar bear on a Japanese mountain!?

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