📖 Meaning
A metaphor for a husband and wife living in harmony and deep affection. It is commonly used to wish people a happy and lasting marriage. It is a variant form of 凤凰于飞.
📜 Origin Story
The phrase comes from the Shijing (Book of Songs), the oldest existing collection of Chinese poetry, compiled during the Spring and Autumn period from works of the Western Zhou dynasty. In the poem '卷阿' (Juan E) from the 'Daya' (Major Odes) section, the line reads '凤凰于飞，刿刿其羽' — phoenixes soaring together, their wings rustling. The image of the phoenixes flying in companionship came to symbolize conjugal love and marital bliss, and the form 凤皇于飞 is an older written variant of 凤凰于飞.
💡 Example Usage
新婚之际，祝愿两位新人凤皇于飞，白头偕老。
On the occasion of your wedding, I wish you both a marriage as harmonious as phoenixes flying together, growing old side by side.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 凤皇于飞
- Pinyin: fèng huáng yú fēi
- Literal Translation: phoenix, phoenix, at, fly
- Category: Emotion
- Characters: 4