Definition

1. Noun:
   • An altar curtain: A decorative curtain or valance, often embroidered, hung in front of an altar or shrine.
   • A main gate of a mandarin's residence: The principal, formal gate of the house or mansion of a high-ranking official in historical Vietnam.

Usage Examples

• Noun (Altar curtain):

  • Trên bàn thờ có treo một tấm nghi môn thêu rồng phượng. (An embroidered nghi môn with dragons and phoenixes is hung in front of the altar.)
  • Nghi môn của đình làng được thay mới vào dịp lễ hội. (The village communal house's nghi môn was replaced for the festival.)

• Noun (Main gate):

  • Quan lớn ra đón khách ở nghi môn. (The high-ranking mandarin came out to greet guests at the nghi môn.)
  • Cổng nghi môn của dinh thự xưa thường rất đồ sộ. (The nghi môn gate of old mansions was often very imposing.)

Advanced Usage

• This is a specialized, historical term. In modern Vietnamese, for the concept of an "altar curtain," terms like màn thờ or rèm bàn thờ are more commonly used in everyday language. For a "main gate," cổng chính is the common modern term.
• The term nghi môn is primarily encountered in historical texts, descriptions of traditional architecture, religious contexts, or cultural studies.

Variants and Related Words

• Màn thờ (n): Altar curtain. (A more common modern synonym for the first meaning).
• Cổng chính (n): Main gate. (A more common modern synonym for the second meaning).
• Bình phong (n): Screen wall (often placed inside a gate for Feng Shui purposes, a related architectural feature).

Synonyms

• Rèm bàn thờ: Altar curtain.
• Cửa chính: Main door/gate.

Notes on Different Meanings

• The two primary meanings of nghi môn belong to different semantic fields (religious artifact vs. architectural feature) but share the concept of a formal, front-facing structure (a curtain facing the altar, a gate facing the street).
• The correct meaning must be determined from context. In a context discussing worship, altars, or temples, it refers to the curtain. In a context discussing the houses of officials, historical architecture, or compounds, it refers to the main gate.

1. Alter-curtain