Etymology The palace gained its name from its enormous scale and severely restricted access to all but the Emperor, the Imperial family, and Eunuchs; hence the Chinese term "Forbidden City" emerged. The punishment for unauthorised entry to the palace was immediate execution. The common English name "Forbidden City" is a translation of the Chinese name Zijincheng (; ), which first formally appeared in 1576.p26, Barmé, Geremie R (2008). The Forbidden City. Harvard University Press. Another English name of similar origin is "Forbidden Palace," though "city" is much closer to the original Chinese meaning.See, e.g.,
etymology the palace gained its name from its enormous scale and severely restricted access to all but the emperor the imperial family and eunuchs; hence the chinese term "forbidden city" emerged the punishment for unauthorised entry to the palace was immediate execution the common english name "forbidden city" is a translation of the chinese name zijincheng (; ) which first formally appeared in 1576p26 barmé geremie r (2008) the forbidden city harvard university press another english name of similar origin is "forbidden palace" though "city" is much closer to the original chinese meaningsee eg