<p>This is more of a history question.</p>

<p>勇 is short for <a href="http://www.zdic.net/c/1/ee/244177.htm">乡勇</a>, which roughly means "militia". They are temporary soldiers recruited from the local population in times of need, and are usually disbanded soon after. Soldiers wearing 勇 on their uniforms was a Qing dynasty thing though; they stood in contrast to the elite <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eight_Banners">Banner Armies</a> and the professional <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Standard_Army">Green Standard Army</a>, both of which could be lifetime occupations.</p>

<p>In movies, you might see Qing soldiers wearing uniforms with either 兵 or 勇 written on it. Those with 兵 would probably be from the Green Standard Army, which was usually employed as a police force, although theoretically Bannermen could be wearing this uniform as well. Those with 勇 would be the militia.</p>

<p>In most cases, 勇 would be of inferior quality to 兵. There is also a connotation of loyalty - as 勇 are raised by local authorities, they tend to be less loyal to the Imperial regime than their local masters. Things were different during and after the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taiping_Rebellion">Taiping rebellion</a>, where the 勇 were transformed into a standing army called the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xiang_Army">Xiang Army</a>. The fact that these soldiers were - like their 勇 predecessors - loyal only to their own commanders would foreshadow the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warlord_Era">Warlord Era</a>, where many of the warlord armies could trace their origins back to various Xiang armies.</p>

<p>Further information here: <a href="http://history.sina.com.cn/bk/mqs/2013-12-18/145264781.shtml">http://history.sina.com.cn/bk/mqs/2013-12-18/145264781.shtml</a></p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-01-30T15:40:17.247Z
There are 2 phrases about this topic:

`“清兵胸口一个字,勇”`

`“像是清兵一样，勇字在心头”`

Means you should behave like those Qing soldier, have a '勇' character in front of your chest.

Usage: use to encourage people, ask them to be brave(勇)
Raynoceros
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-01-30T13:37:09.750Z
2015-01-30T13:37:09.750Z
congusbongus
<p>I don't know much about Chinese military history, but I do see this character appearing on historical uniforms (fictitious or actual)  worn by soldiers in movies, some are set in the Qing dynasty some are earlier. </p>

<p>Is there a tradition of using 勇 in military context? What connotations does this have? Or do you have anything you could contribute concerning this? </p>

<usage><characters><history>
勇 character on soldiers' uniforms in movies
# 勇 character on soldiers' uniforms in movies

(Asked by: username_0 on 2015-01-30)

I don't know much about Chinese military history, but I do see this character appearing on historical uniforms (fictitious or actual) worn by soldiers in movies, some are set in the Qing dynasty some are earlier.

Is there a tradition of using 勇 in military context? What connotations does this have? Or do you have anything you could contribute concerning this?

**Tags:** usage, characters, history

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## 1 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2015-01-30. Score: 15 | Accepted answer

This is more of a history question.

勇 is short for [乡勇](http://www.zdic.net/c/1/ee/244177.htm), which roughly means "militia". They are temporary soldiers recruited from the local population in times of need, and are usually disbanded soon after. Soldiers wearing 勇 on their uniforms was a Qing dynasty thing though; they stood in contrast to the elite [Banner Armies](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eight_Banners) and the professional [Green Standard Army](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Standard_Army), both of which could be lifetime occupations.

In movies, you might see Qing soldiers wearing uniforms with either 兵 or 勇 written on it. Those with 兵 would probably be from the Green Standard Army, which was usually employed as a police force, although theoretically Bannermen could be wearing this uniform as well. Those with 勇 would be the militia.

In most cases, 勇 would be of inferior quality to 兵. There is also a connotation of loyalty - as 勇 are raised by local authorities, they tend to be less loyal to the Imperial regime than their local masters. Things were different during and after the [Taiping rebellion](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taiping_Rebellion), where the 勇 were transformed into a standing army called the [Xiang Army](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xiang_Army). The fact that these soldiers were - like their 勇 predecessors - loyal only to their own commanders would foreshadow the [Warlord Era](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warlord_Era), where many of the warlord armies could trace their origins back to various Xiang armies.

Further information here: <http://history.sina.com.cn/bk/mqs/2013-12-18/145264781.shtml>

> **Comments:**
> **username_2**: There are 2 phrases about this topic:  `“清兵胸口一个字,勇”`  `“像是清兵一样，勇字在心头”`  Means you should behave like those Qing soldier, have a '勇' character in front of your chest.  Usage: use to encourage people, ask them to be brave(勇)  

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