Passeridae

Under Sibley and Monroe, the Passeridae as given here are a subfamily of a larger Passeridae, which also includes the subfamilies Motacillinae (wagtails and pipits), Prunellinae (accentors), Ploceinae (weavers), and Estrildinae (waxbills).

1. General names

Several of the sparrows are closely associated with human habitation. In Asia the common local sparrow is the Eurasian tree sparrow, Passer montanus.

Chinese: The general word for 'sparrow' is 麻雀 má-què, literally 'flaxen sparrow'. In its unmodified form, this refers to Passer montanus, although Mainland naturalists somewhat pedantically give this species the alternative 'common name' of 树麻雀 shù má-què 'tree sparrow'.

The character 雀 què, originally meaning 'sparrow', is now one of the most widely used characters in bird names, used for many birds completely unrelated to the sparrows. The family 雀科 Què kē refers not to the sparrows but to the finches (Fringillidae). In some cases, notably that of the Green peacock, 雀 is used for a very unpasserine type of bird.

Other species: The rock sparrow has been given the name 石雀 shí-què 'stone sparrow' and the snow finches 雪雀 xuě-què 'snow sparrow/finch'.

Japanese: The Japanese word for 'sparrow' is スズメ suzume, written with the Chinese character 雀. Unmodified, スズメ suzume refers to Passer montanus.

Vietnamese: The Vietnamese word for 'sparrow' is Sẻ. Unmodified, this refers to Passer montanus. (Apart from the sparrows, the word is also used in the names of the bushchats and some buntings and finches). P. montanus has a number of local variant names.

2. Species names

SCIENTIFIC & ENGLISH		CHINESE			JAPANESE		VIETNAMESE
Latin	English	Chinese	Chinese (Taiwan)	Other Ch	Japanese	Other J	Vietnamese	Other V
Passer
Passer ammodendri	Saxaul sparrow	黑顶麻雀 hēi-dǐng má-què 'black-capped sparrow' 西域麻雀 xī-yù má-què 'Western region sparrow' (Alternative in 1)			ノウメンスズメ (能面雀) nō-men suzume 'Noh mask sparrow' (bird's face resembles mask used in traditional Noh theatre)
Passer domesticus	House sparrow	家麻雀 jiā má-què 'house sparrow'			イエスズメ (家雀) ie suzume 'house sparrow'
Passer hispaniolensis	Spanish sparrow (Cheng) or Willow sparrow	黑胸麻雀 hēi-xiōng má-què 'black-breasted sparrow'			スペインスズメ (スペイン雀) Supein suzume 'Spanish sparrow'
Passer rutilans	Russet sparrow Cinnamon sparrow (Cheng) Ruddy sparrow	山麻雀 shān má-què 'mountain sparrow'	山麻雀 shān má-què 'mountain sparrow'	黄雀 huáng-què 'yellow sparrow' 红雀 hóng-què 'red sparrow' 桂色雀 guì-sè què 'cinnamon coloured sparrow' 赭麻雀 zhě má-què 'reddish-brown sparrow' 山只只 shān zhī-zhī (?) 'mountain zhi zhi'	ニュウナイスズメ (入内雀) nyūnai suzume 'enter inside sparrow' (the characters for nyūnai refer to conferral of 'inner' court rank in ancient Japan, a step up from provincial 'outer' rank)		Sẻ hung 'reddish sparrow'
Passer flaveolus	Plain-backed sparrow Pegu house sparrow	黄腹麻雀 huáng-fù má-què 'yellow-bellied sparrow'			セアカスズメ (背赤雀) se-aka suzume 'red-backed sparrow'		Sẻ bụi vàng 'golden bush sparrow'
Passer montanus	Eurasian tree sparrow Tree sparrow (Cheng)	麻雀 má-què 'sparrow' 树麻雀 shù má-què 'tree sparrow' (Alternative in 1, 3)	麻雀 má-què 'sparrow'	麻雀儿 má -qiǎor 'sparrow' 家雀 jiā-què 'house sparrow' 家雀儿 jiā-qiǎor 'house sparrow' (dialect) 琉麻雀 liú má-què 'glazed sparrow' 老家贼 lǎo jiā-zéi 'old house thief' (dialect) 老家子 lǎo jiāzi 'old house fellow' 老雀子 lǎo qiǎozi 'old sparrow' 王母使者 wángmǔ shǐzhě 'emissary of the queen mother' (see note) 宾雀 bīn-què 'guest sparrow' 瓦雀 wǎ-què 'tile sparrow' 只只 zhī-zhī (?) 'zhi zhi'	スズメ (雀) suzume 'sparrow'	コウジャク 黄雀 kōjaku 'yellow sparrow' A wealth of popular names (see Hiraizumi)	Sẻ 'sparrow'	Chim sẻ 'sparrow bird' Sẻ sẻ 'sparrow' (Central dialects) Se sẻ 'sparrow' (Central and Southern dialects) Chim ri 'sparrow' (Southern dialects) Chim thẻ 'sparrow' (Northern dialects)
Petronia
Petronia petronia	Rock sparrow (Cheng) Streaked rock sparrow Rock petronia	石雀 shí-què 'stone sparrow'			イワスズメ (岩雀) iwa suzume 'rock sparrow'
Montifringilla
Montifringilla nivalis	White-winged snowfinch White-winged snow finch Snow finch (Cheng)	白斑翅雪雀 bái-bān-chì xuě-què 'white streak winged snow sparrow'			ユキスズメ (雪雀) yuki-suzume 'snow sparrow'
Montifringilla adamsi	Black-winged snowfinch or Tibetan snowfinch (Cheng) Adams' snow finch	褐翅雪雀 hè-chì xuě-què 'brown-winged snow sparrow'			ハジロユキスズメ (羽白雪雀) ha-jiro yuki-suzume 'white-winged snow sparrow'
Onychostruthus
Onychostruthus taczanowskii Pyrgilauda taczanowskii Montifringilla taczanowskii	White-rumped snowfinch (Cheng) Mandelli's snow finch	白腰雪雀 bái-yāo xuě-què 'white-rumped snow sparrow'			コシジロユキスズメ (腰白雪雀) koshi-jiro yuki-suzume 'white-rumped snow sparrow'
Pyrgilauda
Pyrgilauda davidiana Montifringilla davidiana	Père David's snow finch Small snowfinch David's snow finch (Cheng)	黑喉雪雀 hēi-hóu xuě-què 'black-throated snow sparrow'			モウコユキスズメ (蒙古雪雀) Mōko yuki-suzume 'Mongolian snow sparrow'
Pyrgilauda ruficollis Montifringilla ruficollis	Rufous-necked snowfinch Red-necked snow finch (Cheng)	棕颈雪雀 zōng-jǐng xuě-què 'reddish-brown-necked snow sparrow'			チャミミユキスズメ (茶耳雪雀) cha-mimi yuki-suzume 'brown-eared snow sparrow'
Pyrgilauda blanfordi Montifringilla blanfordii	Blanford's snow finch (Cheng) Plain-backed snowfinch	棕背雪雀 zōng-bèi xuě-què 'reddish-brown-backed snow sparrow'			ノドグロユキスズメ (喉黒雪雀) nodo-guro yuki-suzume 'black-throated snow sparrow'
Latin	English	Chinese	Chinese (Taiwan)	Other Ch	Japanese	Other J	Vietnamese	Other V

3. Notes

1. One of the minor mysteries of bird naming is how the same bird, Montifringilla adamsi, can be called the 'Black-winged snow finch', the 'Brown-winged snow finch', and the 'White-winged snow finch', depending on the language.

2. Traditionally, the word 黄雀 huáng-què 'yellow sparrow' referred to the sparrow (still preserved in Japanese as 黄雀 kōjaku). In Modern Chinese, ornithologists have assigned the term 黄雀 huáng-què to the siskin (Carduelis spinus).

4. Cultural Notes

One of the alternative Chinese names for the Tree sparrow, 王母使者 wángmǔ shǐzhě ('emissary of the queen mother') relates to a story from ancient China. Yang Bao was a man of great moral integrity. In his childhood, he found an injured 'yellow sparrow' (黄雀 huáng-què) which he rescued and nursed back to health. One night a boy dressed in yellow appeared to Yang Bao saying he was a servant of the Queen Mother of the West. While on a mission to the fairy land in the east he had been attacked by a bird of prey and owed his life to Yang Bao. The boy gave Yang Bao four rings, guaranteeing that four generations of his family would rise to high rank.

In Japanese haiku, baby sparrows or 雀の子 suzume no ko are a season word for spring. One word used for the baby sparrow is 黄雀 ki-suzume or 'yellow sparrow', from the colour at the side of the young sparrow's bill. These two characters may also be read kōjaku, as seen above.