Yuefu
/ˈjweɪˌfuː/noun
A genre of Chinese poetry modeled on songs collected or composed by the imperial Music Bureau, especially during the Han dynasty.
Did you know?The Han dynasty Music Bureau reportedly collected songs from across the empire, making Yuefu poetry an unusually direct record of ordinary voices, love, war, labor, and political life.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient China, before the Han dynasty
Chinese
yuè (樂) + fǔ (府)
“Music plus an official office or government bureau”
2nd Century BCE
Chinese
樂府
“The imperial Music Bureau established under the Han dynasty, associated with collecting and performing songs”
Han dynasty, 206 BCE–220 CE
Chinese
yuèfǔ
“Songs and poetic texts connected with the Music Bureau, including works reflecting popular and courtly life”
Six Dynasties, 220–589 CE
Chinese
樂府詩
“Music-Bureau poetry; older songs were preserved, adapted, and imitated as a literary genre”
20th Century
English
yuefu
“An English scholarly loanword for this Chinese poetic genre and its traditional song texts”
Modern English
English
Yuefu
“Chinese poems modeled on ancient Music-Bureau songs, often translated as “folk-song style” or “Music Bureau poetry””