Chiwen (Chinese: 螭吻; pinyin: chīwěn; Wade–Giles: ch'ih-wen; literally: "hornless-dragon mouth", Chi Wen) is a chinese dragon, and one of the 9 sons of the dragon in Chinese mythology. He is depicted in imperial roof decorations and other ornamental motifs in traditional Chinese architecture and art.
This Chinese dragon name chiwen 螭吻 compounds chi "hornless dragon; young dragon" and wen "(animal's) mouth; lips; kiss". Chishou 螭首 and Chitou 螭頭 (both literally meaning "hornless-dragon head") are related architectural ornaments or waterspouts, comparable with Western gargoyles. Chiwen and Chishou are not the character in chinese mythology.
Chiwen 螭吻 is alternatively written chiwen 鴟吻 ("owl mouth"), using the homophonous Chinese character chi "owl; sparrowhawk; bird of prey". The chiwei 鴟尾 ("owl tail") and chimeng 鴟甍 ("owl roof-ridge") are additional birdlike roof decorations.
The chiwen is listed second or third among the Long sheng jiuzi 龍生九子 ("dragon gives birth to nine young"), Nine Dragons (Chinese: 九龙; pinyin: jiǔlóng), which are traditional mythology creatures and become traditional Chinese fengshui architectural decorations. Each one of those creatures have a protective function. The Nine dragon are also used in many place names, such as Kowloon ("nine dragons" in Cantonese), in Hong Kong, but also numerous lakes, rivers or hamlets in mainland China.