Jingwei 精卫
Jīngwèi
After a storm takes the young Nüwa, she becomes the bird Jingwei and carries stones to the Eastern Sea every day.
- Chinese name
- 精卫
- Pinyin
- Jīngwèi
- Best known for
- 精卫填海
- Reading level
- HSK 4 recommended
Who is Jingwei?
Jingwei is the bird who carries wood and stones to the Eastern Sea after a girl drowns there. Her small body and enormous task make the image memorable: each flight brings only a little material to a vast body of water.
From girl to bird in the Shanhaijing
Follow the traditional account and the details that distinguish it from later retellings.
The source account
The Northern Mountains section of the Shanhaijing describes a bird on Fajiu Mountain, shaped like a crow, with a patterned head, white beak, and red feet. It identifies her as Nüwa, a young daughter of the Flame Emperor, who went into the Eastern Sea, drowned, and did not return.
Reading the details
The girl becomes Jingwei. The bird repeatedly carries wood and stones from the western mountains to fill the Eastern Sea. The passage gives the transformation and repeated action without a scene in which the sea is finally filled.
Names to distinguish
The girl’s name is 女娃 (Nǚwá). It is not 女娲 (Nǚwā), the sky-repairing goddess. Their similar romanized names are an easy source of confusion for English readers.
The name 精卫
精卫 is Jīngwèi in pinyin, with a first tone followed by a fourth tone. The traditional form is 精衛. Treat it as the bird’s name rather than translating the two characters separately to explain her identity.
精卫填海 (Jīngwèi tián hǎi) means ‘Jingwei fills the sea.’ 填 means to fill, and 海 means sea. In this title, the action names her continuing task; it does not establish that she finishes it.
What does her task suggest?
The expression 精卫填海 is used to evoke determination in the face of a formidable task. That interpretation grows from the contrast between the small bird and the immense sea. It is useful to separate this later use of the expression from the concrete events narrated in the source.
When reading our Chinese story, identify what happens before the transformation and what Jingwei carries afterward. Those details explain the action without needing an added speech about perseverance. Compare her endless work with Wu Gang’s chopping: both repeat a task, but their circumstances are different.
Meet Jingwei
in Chinese.
A short excerpt from Jingwei Fills the Sea, with character-aligned pinyin.
The Yan Emperor had a young daughter named Nüwa.
She loved the sea and often went to the shore to look at it.
炎帝有一个小女儿，名叫女娃。
她喜欢大海，常常到海边看海。
Traditional accounts vary across texts and periods. This guide distinguishes its source from later adaptations.
Questions about Jingwei
Names, source traditions, and the details behind the story.
Who was Jingwei before becoming a bird?
In the Shanhaijing account, she was 女娃 (Nǚwá), a young daughter of the Flame Emperor. She drowned in the Eastern Sea and became the bird Jingwei.
Does Jingwei succeed in filling the sea?
The cited passage describes her repeatedly carrying wood and stones. It does not narrate a completed sea-filling or give her task a final victory.
Is Jingwei the same as Nüwa?
No. Jingwei’s original name 女娃 (Nǚwá) differs from the goddess 女娲 (Nǚwā). The last character and tone are different.