section_path: Name
section_name: Name
paragraph_text: Name
  
  Laozi / ˈ l aʊ d z ə / is the modern pinyin romanization of 老子. It is not a personal name, but rather an honorific title, meaning 'old' or 'venerable'. Its structure matches that of other ancient Chinese philosophers, such as Kongzi, Mengzi, and Zhuangzi.
  
  Traditional accounts give Laozi the personal name Li Er (李 耳, Lǐ Ěr), whose Old Chinese pronunciation has been reconstructed as *C.rəʔ C.nəʔ. Li is a common Chinese surname which also has the meaning meaning ' plum ' or plum tree when used as a common noun; there is a legend tying Laozi's birth to a plum tree. Laozi has long been identified with the persona Lao Dan (老 聃, Lǎo Dān). Dan similarly means "Long-Ear" or "the Long-Eared One". The character 耳 is the Chinese word for 'ear'.
  
  Laozi is recorded bearing the courtesy name Boyang (伯 陽, Bóyáng), whose Old Chinese pronunciation has been reconstructed as *pˤrak laŋ. The character 伯 was the title of the eldest son born to the primary wife, or an uncle of the father's family who was older than one's father, also used as a noble title indicating an aristocratic lineage head with rulership over a small to medium domain, and as a general mark of respect. The character 陽 is yang, the solar and masculine life force in Taoist belief. Lao Dan seems to have been used more generally, however, including by Sima Qian in his Records of the Grand Historian, in the Zhuangzi, and by some modern scholars.