Exit the Dragon

朝日新聞デジタル：中華民族は「龍」ではなく「羊」の伝承人？　中国学者が新たな主張 - 新華社経済ニュース - ビジネス・経済 via kwout

【新華網】中国・江蘇省南通市図書館の黄楊館長は、「中華民族は『龍の伝承人』と呼ぶよりも『羊の伝承人』と呼ぶべきだ」との新たな主張を述べた。

中華民族の血脈と見なされる羌族の「羌」は、甲骨文において最も早くに登場した民族に関する唯一の文字だ。甲骨文では羊と羌の意味が同じであるため、羌族人は「羊人」とも呼ばれ、そのトーテムが羊となった。

中国古代の文献資料では、「羊」の文字に信義、善良、奇麗、吉祥、手本などといった豊富な文化的意味が与えられた。黄館長は、「中華民族が龍をあがめる理由は確定できないが、羊が中華民族のトーテムとしてみなされたことは、歴史においても考証できる。『羊』文化が中国文化の本質的特徴を代表している」と語った。

(翻訳　尚蕾／編集翻訳　伊藤亜美)
http://www.asahi.com/business/news/xinhuajapan/AUT201212270090.html

→「羊」の文字に信義、善良、奇麗、吉祥、手本などといった豊富な文化的意味が与えられた

しかし・・・

Sheep - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia via kwout

the sheep is also the eighth of the twelve animals associated with the 12-year cycle of in the Chinese zodiac,

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Sheep - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia via kwout

Sheep play an important role in all the Abrahamic faiths; Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, King David and the Islamic prophet Muhammad were all shepherds. According to the Biblical story of the Binding of Isaac, a ram is sacrificed as a substitute for Isaac after an angel stays Abraham's hand (in the Islamic tradition, Abraham was about to sacrifice Ishmael). Eid al-Adha is a major annual festival in Islam in which sheep (or other animals) are sacrificed in remembrance of this act.[152][153] Sheep are also occasionally sacrificed to commemorate important secular events in Islamic cultures.[154] Greeks and Romans also sacrificed sheep regularly in religious practice, and Judaism also once sacrificed sheep as a Korban (sacrifice), such as the Passover lamb .[151] Ovine symbols—such as the ceremonial blowing of a shofar—still find a presence in modern Judaic traditions. Followers of Christianity are collectively often referred to as a flock, with Christ as the Good Shepherd, and sheep are an element in the Christian iconography of the birth of Jesus. Some Christian saints are considered patrons of shepherds, and even of sheep themselves. Christ is also portrayed as the Sacrificial lamb of God (Agnus Dei) and Easter celebrations in Greece and Romania traditionally feature a meal of Paschal lamb. In many Christian traditions, a church leader is called the pastor, which is derived from the Latin word for shepherd.

中御門天皇 - Wikipedia via kwout

御門と阿片 via kwout

日本人はペンギンで良かったね・・・（爆ｗ