夜郎自大

Chinese

Yelang self-important; arrogant; conceited
simp. and trad.
(夜郎自大) 		夜郎 自大

Etymology

Based on a passage in Records of the Grand Historian:

滇王與漢使者言曰：「漢與我孰大？」及夜郎侯亦然。以道不通，故各自以為一州主，不知漢廣大。 [Traditional Chinese poetry, trad.]
滇王与汉使者言曰：「汉与我孰大？」及夜郎侯亦然。以道不通，故各自以为一州主，不知汉广大。 [Traditional Chinese poetry, simp.]
From: The Records of the Grand Historian, by Sima Qian, c. 91 BCE
Diānwáng yǔ Hàn shǐzhě yán yuē: “Hàn yǔ wǒ shú dà?” Jí Yèlánghóu yì rán. Yǐ dào bù tōng, gù gè zì yǐwéi yī zhōu zhǔ, bùzhī Hàn guǎngdà. [Pinyin]
The King of Dian, while talking to the Han envoys, asked: "The Han (state) and mine, which is larger?" The Yelang lord did so too. As the roads (between their principalities and China) were not open, so each, deeming himself the ruler of a principality, did not know how large and vast the Han (empire) was.

Pronunciation

Idiom

夜郎自大

  1. to be ignorant and arrogant; to be self-deluded
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