Mandarin square
| Mandarin square | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Qing dynasty mandarin square, 6th civil rank, about 30 cm square. | |||||||||
| Chinese name | |||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 補子 | ||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 补子 | ||||||||
| Literal meaning | Master's patch | ||||||||
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| Vietnamese name | |||||||||
| Vietnamese alphabet | Bổ tử | ||||||||
| Chữ Hán | 補子 | ||||||||
| Korean name | |||||||||
| Hangul | 흉배 | ||||||||
| Hanja | 胸背 | ||||||||
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| Manchu name | |||||||||
| Manchu script | ᠰᠠᠪᡳᡵᡤᡳ | ||||||||
| Möllendorff | sabirgi | ||||||||
| English name | |||||||||
| English | Mandarin square/ rank badge | ||||||||
A mandarin square (Chinese: 補子), also known as a rank badge, was a large embroidered badge sewn onto the surcoat of officials in Imperial China (decorating hanfu and qizhuang), Korea (decorating the gwanbok of the Joseon dynasty), in Vietnam, and the Ryukyu Kingdom. It was embroidered with detailed, colourful animal or bird insignia indicating the rank of the official wearing it. Despite its name, the mandarin square (buzi) falls into two categories: round buzi and square buzi. Clothing decorated with buzi is known as bufu (simplified Chinese: 补服; traditional Chinese: 補服) in China. In the 21st century, the use of buzi on hanfu was revived following the Hanfu movement.