thất tịch
Definition
- Noun:
- The Night of the Seventh: Refers specifically to the night of the seventh day of the seventh lunar month in the traditional Vietnamese calendar.
- A Legendary Meeting: Denotes the annual reunion of the Cowherd (Ngưu Lang) and the Weaver Girl (Chức Nữ), two separated lovers in East Asian mythology, who are said to meet on this night across a bridge formed by magpies.
Usage Examples
- Noun:
- Truyền thuyết kể rằng Ngưu Lang và Chức Nữ gặp nhau vào đêm thất tịch. (The legend says the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl meet on the Night of the Seventh.)
- Thất tịch là một ngày lễ tình nhân theo văn hóa Á Đông. (Thất tịch is a lovers' festival in East Asian culture.)
Advanced Usage
- The term is primarily used in literary, cultural, or historical contexts to refer to this specific festival and its associated legend. It is not used in everyday modern conversation.
Variants and Related Words
- Ngày Thất Tịch (n): The Day of the Seventh, often used interchangeably with "thất tịch."
- Lễ Thất Tịch (n): The Festival of the Seventh.
- Tết Thất Tịch (n): The Seventh of July Festival.
Synonyms
- The Double Seventh Festival: A common English translation.
- The Qixi Festival: The direct transliteration from Chinese, denoting the same cultural event.
- The Night of Sevens: A descriptive synonym.
Related Idioms and Cultural References
- Cầu duyên thất tịch: To pray for a romantic relationship on the Night of the Seventh.
- Các cô gái trẻ thường cầu duyên thất tịch. (Young women often pray for love on the Night of the Seventh.)
- Ước nguyện đêm thất tịch: Wishes made on the Night of the Seventh, believed to be more likely to come true.
- The story itself is often summarized as "Chuyện tình Ngưu Lang Chức Nữ" (The Love Story of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl).