Liuqiu

Liu·qiu
L1I1U1Q10I1U1

proper noun

Synonym of Ryukyu (“island chain”): the Mandarin Chinese-derived name.

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Meanings

proper noun

alternative Liuchiu · alternative Liouciou · alternative Loochoo · alternative Loo Choo · alternative Lewchew · alternative Lew Chew · alternative Luchu · alternative Liqueo · alternative Lequio · alternative Liquea · alternative Lieuchieu · alternative Liukiu · alternative Liu Kiu · alternative Lekeyo · alternative Leoo-keoo · alternative Leookeoo

  1. Synonym of Ryukyu (“island chain”): the Mandarin Chinese-derived name.First known use 20th c.

    There is moreover in the woods marvelous ſtore of Braſil and Ebony, wherewith an hundred Juncks are every year laden to be tranſported to China, Hainan, the Lequios, Camboya and Camphaa ;

    [1663, The Voyages and Adventures of Ferdinand Mendez Pinto, page 285
    2 more examples

    Japan, emerging from its century-long seclusion, annexed the Liuqiu (Ryukus) Islands and, by defeating the Chinese in Korea (1894-95), began to exert control over that peninsula as well as the island of Taiwan.

    1981, China: A Country Study (Area Handbook Series), 3rd edition, Government Printing Office, →LCCN, →OCLC, page 21

    Relations between the Qing court and the king of the Liuqiu Islands were maintained regularly; as the Qing emperors welcomed ambassadors and tribute missions from the Liuqius, Chinese coastal trade with the Liuqiu Islands flourished.

    1996, D. R. Howland, “Encountering Japan”, in Borders of Chinese Civilization: Geography and History at Empire's End, Duke University Press, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, page 17

    Synonyms: Ryukyu

  2. A rural township of Pingtung County, Taiwan, encompassing Liuqiu Island.

    With the coming of the bluefin tuna fishing season, a Liuqiu Township-based fishing boat caught the county's first tuna fish of this year, CNA reported.

    2022 April 10, George Liao, “'First tuna fish’ caught in Pingtung this year sells for over NT$2 million in southern Taiwan auction”, in Taiwan News, archived from the original on 10 Apr 2022
  3. The island of Liuqiu, Pingtung County, Taiwan.

    Much of the ocean they surveyed last summer was above 30 degrees Celsius for three months. The worst area was in Little Liuqiu, a coral island off the southwest coast in the Taiwan Strait where 55 percent of corals have now been seriously bleached.

    2021 January 13, “'Corals are being cooked': A third of Taiwan's reefs are dying”, in France 24, archived from the original on 13 Jan 2021
    2 more examples

    “Nothing is going to change after the military exercises, there’ll be one like this and then another,” said Li Wen-te, a 63-year-old retired fisherman in Liuqiu, an island off the southwestern coast of Taiwan, less than six miles from China’s drills.[…] “I cherish our freedom of speech and don’t want to be unified by China,” said Huang Chiu-hong, 47, the owner of a shop that sells fried sticks of braided dough, a local snack, on Liuqiu, the Taiwanese island.

    2022 August 7, Chris Buckley, Amy Chang Chien, John Liu, “After China’s Military Spectacle, Options Narrow for Winning Over Taiwan”, in The New York Times, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 07 Aug 2022

    China said this week it would conduct more drills focusing on anti-submarine and sea assault operations - confirming the fears of some security analysts and diplomats that it would keep up the pressure on Taiwan's defences. read more But on Liuqiu island, a picturesque tourist spot near one of the areas where the Chinese military was conducting exercises last week, people were largely indifferent.

    2022 August 10, Ann Wang, I-Hwa Cheng, Aleksander Solum, Sarah Wu, Ben Blanchard, Yimou Lee, Farah Master, “Taiwan residents largely calm in the face of Chinese anger”, in Robert Birsel, editor, Reuters, archived from the original on 10 Aug 2022, Asia Pacific

Synonyms & antonyms

proper nounSynonym of Ryukyu (“island chain”): the Mandarin Chinese-derived name.

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Origin

From the Hanyu Pinyin romanization of Mandarin 琉球 (Liúqiú). Doublet of Ryukyu.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Chinese Cantonese 琉球
  • 琉球 (lau⁴ kau⁴)Translations
Chinese Mandarin 琉球
  • 琉球 (Liúqiú)Translations
Polish Liuqiu
  • LiuqiuTranslations
Cite this entry
APA

Liuqiu. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Liuqiu

MLA

“Liuqiu.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Liuqiu. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Liuqiu,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Liuqiu.

Source: Liuqiu on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.