玛雅
Mǎyǎ
In Chinese, the phrase for the Maya civilization is 玛雅 (Mǎyǎ).
玛雅 is used to refer to the Maya civilization.
Meaning: civilization (noun)
Which one should you use?
The form 玛雅 uses simplified Chinese characters. In traditional Chinese characters, the word is written as 瑪雅. For artistic purposes such as calligraphy or personal seals, the forms 瑪亞 or 玛娅 may also be used to represent the name Maya.
How do you pronounce it?
Mǎyǎ
Did you know?
- The character 雅 (yǎ) in the traditional version of 瑪雅 means 'elegant' or 'refined', which inadvertently gives the name a very positive, high-class connotation in Chinese.
- While 玛雅 refers to the ancient civilization, in modern Chinese pop culture, the name 'Maya' is frequently used as a phonetic transliteration for the common female name 'Maya' in English.
- While 玛雅 is the standard term, Chinese speakers often group the Maya and Aztecs together under the broader term 中美洲文明 meaning 'Mesoamerican civilizations'.
Examples in context
- 玛雅文明繁荣了多久？For how long did the Maya culture flourish?This sentence is useful for discussing the duration of the period during which the 玛雅 culture flourished.Tatoeba #1948457 by bigfatpanda, translation #32407 by carlosalberto
- 我的名字是Maya，一个外国名字。My name is Maya, a foreign name.
- 玛雅女士，您好。Hello, Ms. Maya.
- 玛雅人建造了巨大的金字塔。Mǎyǎ rén jiànzào le jùdà de jīnzìtǎ.The Maya people built huge pyramids.
- 我对玛雅历史很感兴趣。Wǒ duì Mǎyǎ lìshǐ hěn gǎn xìngqù.I am very interested in Maya history.
Example conversation
Two friends are talking about a history documentary.
- 梓涵 Zihan你看了关于玛雅的纪录片吗？Nǐ kàn le guānyú Mǎyǎ de jìlùpiàn ma?Did you watch the documentary about the Maya?
- 伟 Wei看了，玛雅文明非常神秘。Kàn le, Mǎyǎ wénmíng fēicháng shénmì.I did, the Maya civilization is very mysterious.
- 梓涵 Zihan我也觉得，伟，它真的很迷人。Wǒ yě juéde, Wěi, tā zhēn de hěn mírén.I think so too, Wei, it is truly fascinating.
- 伟 Wei确实，我也想去研究一下。Quèshí, wǒ yě xiǎng qù yánjiū yīxià.Indeed, I also want to study it.
Sources
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
