thầy lang
Definition
- Noun:
- Traditional medicine practitioner: A person who diagnoses and treats illnesses using traditional Vietnamese or East Asian herbal medicine and methods, often passed down through generations or learned through apprenticeship, rather than modern Western medicine.
Usage Examples
- Noun:
- Ông cụ là một thầy lang nổi tiếng trong vùng. (The old man is a famous traditional medicine practitioner in the region.)
- Nhiều người vẫn tin tưởng tìm đến thầy lang để chữa bệnh. (Many people still trust and seek out a traditional medicine practitioner for treatment.)
Advanced Usage
- The term can sometimes carry a nuanced, slightly informal or rustic connotation compared to the more formal "lương y" (virtuous physician), which also refers to a practitioner of traditional medicine.
Variants and Related Words
- Lang y (n): A synonym for , though slightly less common in everyday speech.
- Lương y (n): A virtuous doctor or physician, often used for traditional medicine practitioners with high moral standing.
- Thầy thuốc Đông y (n): A practitioner of Eastern (Asian) medicine; a more formal and descriptive term.
- Thầy thuốc nam (n): A practitioner specifically of Southern (Vietnamese) traditional medicine.
Synonyms
- Herbalist: A person who practices healing using plants.
- Traditional healer: A general term for a person who uses non-modern, cultural healing practices.
Related Idioms
- Chạy thầy chạy thuốc: To run around seeking doctors and medicine; to desperately seek medical help from various sources.
- Gia đình chạy thầy chạy thuốc khắp nơi cho đứa trẻ. (The family desperately sought doctors and medicine everywhere for the child.)