For now, everyone has defaulted to Yang Guifei = Yang Yuhuan, but there are other versions of this name. Zheng Xi's "Jinyangmen Poetry Notes" said: "Jade slave, Taizhen is also a small character." Zheng Chujie and Zheng Xi were both from the Tang Dynasty, lived in similar eras, and were both Jinshi scholars, so their statements have credible reasons.
1. Yuhuan
As for the name "Yuhuan", there is a legend that when Concubine Yang was born, she had a jade ring on her arm, so she was named this.
There is another theory, which is that it is found from historical data that the word "huan" was sometimes used by the ancients as a substitute for obesity. For example: Li Chengyi is the second brother of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty. The "Old Book of Tang" describes him as "majestic in appearance and majestic in appearance". "New Book of Tang" said that he was "well-groomed and handsome". What exactly is Huanwei or Huanzhong? How big is the belly of a person who can be called a "ring"? "Liang Shu" gave the size when describing Xiao Dachun, the king of Anlu in Southern Liang. The book records: "The body is magnificent and the belt is ten circumferences." Men's fatness can be called "rings", but can women's fatness also be called this? In the tenth year of Tianbao (751), the Battle of Danros broke out between the Tang Dynasty and Dashi. As a result, they were defeated. A man named Du Huan became a prisoner. After staying in Central Asia, West Asia and other Dashi-occupied areas for more than ten years, he returned In China, he wrote about his travels and experiences in the book "Jing Xing Ji". When describing the women who eat food, this book says: "The women of the scholar family grew up in a beautiful environment, their clothes were fresh and clean, and their appearance was leisurely and beautiful. When women go out, they must be surrounded by their faces." "This record shows that in the Tang Dynasty, the word "Huanwei" was not only used to describe fat and tall men, but also to describe the beauty of women.
Let's go back and talk about Yang Yuhuan's "huan". She is famous for her "fengxing". In ancient books, the word "feng" is used to summarize her appearance. If another word is used instead, One word "ring" can be used to describe her appearance, and it is definitely similar but similar in approach and purpose.
2. Jade Slave
Perhaps based on our current study, everyone will think that the name does not contain the word slave, but in the Tang Dynasty, there was a custom of naming, giving When naming a child, the last word often includes the word "nu". It is very common to be named after "nu". For example, Li Zhi, Emperor Gaozong of the Tang Dynasty, was nicknamed Zhinu, and Bai Juyi's younger brother was named Jingangnu. The nickname of King Li Jing of Ruyang is also Hua Nu. There is also a Nian Nu in "The Palace of Eternal Life". The "nu" here represents a nickname and has no real meaning. Therefore, the existence of the name "Jade Slave" is reasonable.
In the mid-Tang Dynasty, the legendary novel "The Travels of Zhou and Qin" mentioned for the first time: "Jade Slave, Tai Zhen's name"; in the Northern Song Dynasty, Su Shi's "The Night Tour of Madam Guo Guo" said: " In the palace, the Jiegu drum urges the flowers and willows, and the jade slave strings the flower slave's hand." At the end of the Ming Dynasty, Kuang Lu said: "Yang Guifei, whose name is Yunu, also known as Yuhuan." Although this evidence is not enough to prove that Concubine Yang's real name is "Yu Nu", it can at least prove that the name "Yu Nu" should exist.