Beihai
/peɪ˥˩˦ xaɪ˩˦/noun
Beihai is a city and coastal port in Guangxi, China, whose name literally means “North Sea.”
Did you know?In Chinese traditional cosmology, directional names such as north, south, east, and west could evoke larger systems of geography, ritual order, and imperial symbolism—not merely locations.
Etymological Timeline
Old Chinese, 1st millennium BCE
Old Chinese
北海
“A compound meaning “north” and “sea”; 北 meant north or back, while 海 meant sea.”
Middle Chinese, c. 6th–10th centuries
Middle Chinese
北海
“Pronounced approximately *pek hai*, retaining the literal sense “North Sea.””
Late Imperial Chinese
Chinese
北海
“Used as a geographic name for northern seas and coastal regions; the same characters also appeared in names of lakes, bays, and administrative places.”
19th Century
Cantonese/English
Pak-hoi / Pei-hai
“The place-name was recorded in non-Mandarin romanizations as foreign merchants and colonial authorities mapped the southern Chinese coast.”
Modern Mandarin
Mandarin
Běihǎi
“The pinyin form of 北海, literally “North Sea,” and the official name of the Guangxi coastal city.”