Penglai
/ˈpɛŋlaɪ/noun
A legendary island in Chinese mythology, believed to be a paradise inhabited by immortals.
Did you know?In Daoist legend, Penglai was one of three sacred islands in the eastern sea, but its location was deliberately unreachable to ordinary mortals.
Etymological Timeline
Classical Chinese
Chinese
蓬萊 (Pénglái)
“The name of a mythical island; its internal word origin is uncertain and is not securely translated as a known phrase.”
2nd–1st Century BCE
Chinese
蓬莱山 (Pénglái shān)
“Mount Penglai, described in early Chinese historical and mythological writings as a sacred abode of immortals.”
1st–3rd Century CE
Chinese
蓬萊仙山 (Pénglái xiānshān)
“The immortal mountain of Penglai, associated with divine beings and life-extending medicines.”
Medieval Chinese tradition
Chinese
蓬莱
“A symbol of unreachable paradise, immortality, and the quest for an elixir of life.”
19th–20th Century
English
Penglai
“An English transliteration of the Chinese mythological place-name, also used in names for literary, religious, and geographic subjects.”