muông

From Proto-Vietic *t-mɔːŋ (“civet”). Compare Mang muaŋ⁶ ("civet").

Aside from a few compounds, the word is no longer used in Vietnamese. It also seems to once function as a classifier for a few animals, as attested in muông ſư tử (“a lion”) (in the Dictionarium Annamiticum Lusitanum et Latinum) and 獴麟 (muông lân, “a female of the qilin”) (in the Thi kinh giải âm, 詩經解音, a giải âm quasi-translation of the Shijing).

The undiphthongized form of this word might be preserved in the name of Con Moong cave, located in northern Thanh Hoá.

• (Hà Nội) IPA^(key): [muəŋ˧˧]
• (Huế) IPA^(key): [muəŋ˧˧]
• (Saigon) IPA^(key): [muəŋ˧˧]
• Homophone: muôn (South Vietnam)

• Audio (Hà Nội):

  (file)

(classifier con) muông • (獴)

1. (obsolete) a quadruped

muông • (獴)

1. (obsolete) Indicates wild and/or big animals.