foo dog

• fu dog

Possibly a Western invention, from Mandarin 福 (fú, “good fortune”) + English dog. There is no similar word in Chinese itself that uses the word 福, but see English foo and Foo. Compare also Chinese 佛 (“Buddha”), pronounced fo or fu in some varieties.

foo dog (plural foo dogs)

1. A stylized lion statue similar to those usually placed in male and female pairs outside imperial Chinese palaces, tombs, temples, etc.
2. A Pekingese dog.

• (Chinese lion statue): foo lion, guardian lion, stone lion; komainu (Japanese contexts)