Fubao
Fubao (Chinese: 附寶), a woman from the Youjiao Tribe,[1] was according to some Chinese mythology sources the mother-in-law of the inventor of silk, Leizu; mother of Huang Di the Yellow Emperor and of Yan Di the Flame Emperor; and, wife of Shaodian. However, the mythological genealogy varies. Fubao is viewed as ancestress to the Han people who form the majority of the population of China.
Daughter-in-law Leizu
Fubao was mother-in-law to Leizu, who was the inventor of sericulture, the art of silk production, according to Chinese mythology. Silk and fabrics made from silk is one of the world's important textiles (Uschan 2014, 33). Silk is believed to have been produced since neolithic times in China. The "Silk Road" was named after the trade in silk across Eurasia.
Husband
According to mythology, Fubao married Shaodian, sometimes father of Huang Di.
Son, Huang Di
Fubao was the mother of Huang Di, also called the Yellow Emperor. According to Chinese mythology, the birth was miraculous. Fubao is said to have seen a bolt of lightning circling around one of the stars of the Great Bear (Big Dipper). The light was very bright, and she got pregnant. Twenty-four months later Fubao was said to have given birth to Huang Di (Yang et al 2005, 138).
Son, Yan Di
Fubao is also sometimes said to be mother or otherwise ancestral to Yandi (http://www.chinaknowledge.de/History/Myth/personsyandi.html).
See also
References cited
- Ulrich Theobald at http://www.chinaknowledge.de accessed 6 November 2018
- Uschan Michael V. 2014. Greenhaven Publishing LLC
- Yang, Lihui, et al. (2005). Handbook of Chinese Mythology. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-533263-6
Reference notes
- Etudes chinoises: bulletin de l'Association française d'études chinoises. Association française d'études chinoises. 1990. p. 142.
References consulted
- Christie, Anthony (1968). Chinese Mythology. Feltham: Hamlyn Publishing. ISBN 0600006379.
- Wu, K. C. (1982). The Chinese Heritage. New York: Crown Publishers. ISBN 0-517-54475X.