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Hōō

Fènghuáng (Chinese: 鳳凰; Jyutping: fung6 wong4; Cantonese Yale: fuhng wòhng, Mandarin pronunciation: [fə̂ŋ.xwǎŋ]) are mythological birds found in Sinospheric mythology that reign over all other birds. The males were originally called fèng and the females huáng, but this distinction of gender is often no longer made and they are blurred into a single feminine entity so that the bird can be paired with the Chinese dragon, which is traditionally deemed male. It is known under similar names in various other languages (Japanese: hōō; Vietnamese: phượng hoàng or phụng hoàng; Korean: bonghwang). In the Western world, it is commonly called the Chinese phoenix or simply phoenix, although mythological similarities with the Western phoenix are superficial. more »