<p>They are the same, just translated in different ways.</p>

<ol>
<li><code>猛犸</code> is a transliteration. <code>猛</code> means robust dog. 《说文解字》: 猛，健犬也。 <code>犸</code> seems a more modern character, only used here.</li>
<li><code>长毛象</code> is more common than <code>毛象</code>. The literal translation is "elephant with long hair".</li>
</ol>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2012-11-20T05:14:39.647Z
2012-11-20T05:14:39.647Z
halfelf
<p>I often pick up relatively esoteric animal names, and I got looking at mammoths one day... I found two words for mammoth: 猛犸 and 毛象. What is the difference between these two words? </p>

<word-choice>
What are the differences between the different words for mammoth? 猛犸和毛象有什么区别？
# What are the differences between the different words for mammoth? 猛犸和毛象有什么区别？

(Asked by: username_0 on 2012-11-19)

I often pick up relatively esoteric animal names, and I got looking at mammoths one day... I found two words for mammoth: 猛犸 and 毛象. What is the difference between these two words?

**Tags:** word-choice


---

## 1 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2012-11-20. Score: 5 | Accepted answer

They are the same, just translated in different ways.

1. `猛犸` is a transliteration. `猛` means robust dog. 《说文解字》: 猛，健犬也。 `犸` seems a more modern character, only used here.
2. `长毛象` is more common than `毛象`. The literal translation is "elephant with long hair".


---

