Queen Mother of the West

Queen Mother of the West
The Queen Mother of the West in a detail from a painting by Xie Wenli
Abode	Mount Kunlun, or Tortoise Mountain
Consort	Jade Emperor
Chinese name
Chinese	西王母
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Xīwángmǔ Wade–Giles Hsi Wang-mu
Golden Mother of the Jade Pond
Traditional Chinese	瑤池金母
Simplified Chinese	瑶池金母
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Yáochí Jīnmǔ Wade–Giles Yao-chih Chin-mu
Golden Mother the First Ruler
Chinese	金母元君
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Jīnmǔ Yuánjūn
Lady Queen Mother
Chinese	王母娘娘
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Wángmǔ Niángniáng Wade–Giles Wang-mu Niang-niang

The Queen Mother of the West, known by various local names, is a mother goddess in Chinese religion and mythology, also worshipped in neighbouring Asian countries, and attested from ancient times. From her name alone some of her most important characteristics are revealed: she is royal, female, and is associated with the west.^[1]

The first historical information on her can be traced back to Shang dynasty oracle bone inscriptions that record sacrifices to a "Western Mother".^[2] Even though these inscriptions illustrate that she predates organized Taoism, she is most often associated with Taoism. The growing popularity of the Queen Mother of the West, as well as the beliefs that she was the dispenser of prosperity, longevity, and eternal bliss, took place during Han dynasty, in the 2nd century BCE, when the northern and western parts of China were able to be better known because of the opening of the Silk Road.^[3][4]