Mu Guiying (穆桂英) is a

legend A legend is a genre of folklore that consists of a narrative featuring human actions, believed or perceived to have taken place in human history. Narratives in this genre may demonstrate human values, and possess certain qualities that give the ...

ary

heroine A hero (feminine: heroine) is a real person or fictional character who, in the face of danger, combats adversity through feats of ingenuity, courage, or Physical strength, strength. The original hero type of classical epics did such thin ...

from ancient China's Northern

Song dynasty The Song dynasty ( ) was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 960 to 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song, who usurped the throne of the Later Zhou dynasty and went on to conquer the rest of the Fiv ...

and a prominent figure in the ''

Generals of the Yang Family ''The Generals of the Yang Family'' is a collection of Chinese folklore, plays and novels on a military family from the earlier years of imperial China's Song dynasty (960–1279). The stories recount the unflinching loyalty and the remarkable ...

'' legends. She is the wife of

Yang Zongbao Yang Zongbao (楊宗保) is a character in the '' Generals of the Yang Family'' legends. In these largely fictionalized stories, he is the son of general Yang Yanzhao and Princess Chai, the husband of Mu Guiying and the father of Yang Wengua ...

and mother of

Yang Wenguang Yang Wenguang (; died 1074) was a general in ancient China's Northern Song dynasty. In history, Yang Wenguang was the son of Yang Yanzhao; however, he is the grandson of Yang Yanzhao in the popular fictionalized stories of Yang clan warriors. ...

. Brave, resolute and loyal, Mu is the cultural symbol of a steadfast woman.

Legends

Mu Guiying practiced

martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defence; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; ...

from a young age after her bandit father Mu Yu (穆羽) who ruled the Muke Fortress (穆柯寨). One day Yang Zongbao, the youngest warrior of the illustrious Yang clan, came to the fortress demanding the Dragon-Taming Wood (降龍木) on the order of his father, Marshall Yang Yanzhao. Mu refused so they fought in a

duel A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two people with matched weapons. During the 17th and 18th centuries (and earlier), duels were mostly single combats fought with swords (the rapier and later the small sword), but beginning in ...

which resulted in Yang Zongbao being captured. While Yang Zongbao refused to surrender and demanded death, Mu found herself attracted to her prisoner and boldly made a

marriage proposal A marriage proposal is a custom or ritual, common in Western cultures, in which one member of a couple asks the other for their hand in marriage. If accepted, it marks the initiation of engagement, a mutual promise of later marriage. Norms a ...

, which Yang Zongbao eventually accepted. After Yang Zongbao returned and reported the events, an infuriated Yang Yanzhao ordered the disgraced son executed. To save Yang Zongbao, Mu came out of the fortress and engaged in a battle with Yang Yanzhao, also capturing him. Mu apologized to her future father-in-law and finally Yang Yanzhao agreed to the marriage and welcomed Mu to his family and troops. Mu played a huge part in the following battle against the Khitan forces, especially in breaking their previously unstoppable Heavenly Gate Formation (天門陣). Mu Guiying had 2 children with Yang Zongbao, son Yang Wenguang and daughter Yang Jinhua.

Legacy

Mu Guiying is sometimes venerated as a

door god ''Menshen'', or door gods, are divine guardians of doors and gates in Chinese folk religions, used to protect against evil influences or to encourage the entrance of positive ones. They began as the divine pair Shenshu () and Yulü () under ...

dess, usually in partnership with Qin Liangyu. The Mu Guiying crater on Venus is named after her. During China's

Great Leap Forward The Great Leap Forward was an industrialization campaign within China from 1958 to 1962, led by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Party Chairman Mao Zedong launched the campaign to transform the country from an agrarian society into an indu ...

period (1958–1960), Mu Guiying was widely praised and a women-led Mu Guiying

Brigade A brigade is a major tactical military unit, military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute ...

was established. In the graphic novel '' Boxers'' by

Gene Luen Yang Gene Luen Yang (; born August 9, 1973) is an American cartoonist. He is a frequent lecturer on the subjects of graphic novels and comics, at comic book conventions and universities, schools, and libraries. In addition, he was the Director of ...

, the character Mei-wen transforms into Mu Guiying. CITED: p
209
!--https://books.google.com/books?id=L7VqDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT217 is page 209, so-->

Portrayal in films and TV series

Ivy Ling Po Huang Yuet-chu (born November 16, 1939), known professionally by her stage name Ivy Ling Po, is a retired actress and Chinese opera singer from Hong Kong. She gained widespread fame during the 1960s for her roles in several popular Huangmei ...

in ''

The 14 Amazons ''The 14 Amazons'' is a 1972 Hong Kong ''wuxia'' film directed by Cheng Kang and produced by the Shaw Brothers Studio. The award-winning film featured a predominantly female cast. The story is about the female generals of the Yang Family. Ove ...

'' (1972) *

Liza Wang Elizabeth "Liza" Wang Ming-chun Gold Bauhinia Star, GBS Silver Bauhinia Star, SBS (born 28 August 1947), is a Hong Kong diva, actress and Master of Ceremonies, MC. She is a personality in Chinese-speaking communities. She has been nicknamed "The ...

in ''Young's Female Warrior'' (1981) *

Bonnie Ngai Bonnie is a Scottish given name and is sometimes used as a descriptive reference, as in the Scottish folk song, My Bonnie Lies over the Ocean or Bonnie Dundee about John Graham, 7th Laird of Claverhouse. It comes from the Scots language word "bon ...

in ''A Courageous Clan: Mu Kuei-ying'' (1989) * Zhang Yujia in ''Generals of the Yang Family'' (1991) * Mak Ging-ting in ''

Heroic Legend of the Yang's Family Heroic Legend of the Yang's Family (碧血青天楊家將) is a 30-episode 1994 Hong Kong TV series produced by ATV, based on the legendary '' Generals of the Yang Family''. Plot In a fierce battle against the invading army of its neighboring cou ...

'' & ''

The Great General The Great General (碧血青天珍珠旗) is a 30-episode 1994 Hong Kong TV series produced by ATV. It is the sequel to the series ''Heroic Legend of the Yang's Family'', featuring mostly the same cast. Plot Long existed the legend that one can ...

'' (1994) *

Amy Chan Amy Chan Sau-man () is a Hong Kong actress and Cantopop Cantopop (a contraction of "Cantonese pop music") is a genre of pop music sung in Cantonese. Cantopop is also used to refer to the cultural context of its production and consumpt ...

in ''

The Heroine of the Yangs ''The Heroine of the Yangs'' (穆桂英) is a 2-season ATV series aired in Hong Kong in 1998, starring Amy Chan as the titular heroine Muk Gwai-ying of the Yang (Yeung in Cantonese) family. It is an adaptation of the ''Generals of the Yang Fami ...

'' (1998) *

Ning Jing Ning Jing (; born April 27, 1972) is a Chinese actress and singer. She is best known for playing Mi Lan in ''In the Heat of the Sun'' (1994), Danzhu in ''Red River Valley (1997 film), Red River Valley'' (1997), Angel in ''Lover's Grief over the ...

in '' Legendary Fighter: Yang's Heroine'' (2001) * Fang Xiaoli in ''The Fire Commander'' (2001) * Wang Si-yi in ''The Heroine Mu Guiying'' (2004) *

Cecilia Cheung Cecilia Cheung Pak-chi ( zh, 張栢芝; born 24 May 1980) is a Hong Kong actress and singer. Cheung is considered a " Sing girl"—an actress who first received media attention through starring alongside Stephen Chow, and later went on to her ...

in ''

Legendary Amazons ''Legendary Amazons'' is a 2011 Chinese historical drama, historical drama film directed by Frankie Chan and written by Chan, Liu Heng and Ma Honglu. The film is based on the Yang Jia Jiang#Stories of the Yang clan, stories of the Yang Clan Gener ...

'' (2011) * Miao Pu in ''Mu Guiying Takes Command'' (2011) *

Siqin Gaowa Siqin Gaowa (Mongolian Cyrillic ''Цэцэнгуа'', born 19 January 1950), born Duan Anlin, is a Chinese-born Swiss actress. She was born in Guangzhou to a Han Chinese father and a Mongols in China, Mongol Chinese mother. Her father died when s ...

in ''Bai Yutang'' (2013)

References

Additional sources

* *
Yang Jia Jiang (Generals of the Yang Clan)
{{Authority control Chinese goddesses Deified Chinese women The Generals of the Yang Family characters Women in Chinese mythology Women in medieval warfare Women in war in China