Meanings
- alternativeAlternative form of Kongzi (Confucius)
The earliest leader of a school of thought was Confucius (K’ung-tzu).
La Chine Ancienne
1968 [1964], Jacques Gernet, “The Progress of Ideas During the Formation of the Military States”, in Raymond Rudorff, transl., Ancient China: From the Beginnings to the Empire [La Chine Ancienne], Faber and Faber, →OCLC, page 1152 more examples
The earliest fundamental understanding of the nature of health and disease, expounded by the Nei Ching, would have been forgotten were it not for an element peculiar to Chinese culture: the worship of their ancestors, a practice which runs far deeper than the respect shown for Western patriarchs. It was formalized by the teaching of K’ung-tzu, whose Latinized name is Confucius.
1980, Stephen Fulder, “The Chinese Alternative”, in The Book of Ginseng: and Other Chinese Herbs for Vitality, Rochester, Vermont: Healing Arts Press, published 1993, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, page 56So, K’ung-tzu says: 'To master oneself and return to propriety is humanity' (Bk 12.1). We see, in this view, that humaneness was a quality which K’ung-tzu believed to be embodied in li, tradition and custom.
1991, A Southern African Guide to World Religions, →ISBN, →OCLC, page 109
Origin
Transliteration of Mandarin 孔子 (Kǒngzǐ) Wade–Giles romanization: Kʻung³-tzŭ³.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
K'ung-tzu. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/K'ung-tzu
“K'ung-tzu.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/K'ung-tzu. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “K'ung-tzu,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/K'ung-tzu.
Source: K'ung-tzu on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.