Portrait of Laozi
For the name of "Laozi" (老子), it is an honorific title, also romanized as Lao Tse, Lao Tu, Lao-Tsu, Laotze, Lao Tzu, Laosi, Laocius, etc. Lao (老) means "venerable" or "old", such as modern Mandarin laoshi (老师), "teacher". Zi (子), Wade–Giles transliteration tzu, in this context is typically translated as "master". Zi was used in ancient China as an honorific suffix, indicating "Master", or "Sir". In popular biographies, Laozi's given name was Er, his surname was
Li (forming Li Er, 李耳) and his courtesy name was Boiang. Dan is a posthumous name given to Laozi, and he is sometimes referred to as Li Dan (李聃).
Li (forming Li Er, 李耳) and his courtesy name was Boiang. Dan is a posthumous name given to Laozi, and he is sometimes referred to as Li Dan (李聃).
