Black bear (hēi xióng) literally means 'black bear' — 黑 (hēi) means 'black', and 熊 (xióng) means 'bear'. It specifically refers to the Asiatic black bear (Ursus thibetanus), a medium-sized bear native to forests across East and Southeast Asia, easily recognized by its glossy black fur and distinctive white V-shaped chest marking. Unlike the more aggressive brown bear, this species is generally shy and arboreal, often climbing trees to escape danger or forage.

In Chinese, 黑熊 is used in both scientific and everyday contexts — from wildlife documentaries and conservation reports to children’s books and folktales. It is not a generic term for all black-colored bears (e.g., the American black bear is usually translated as 美洲黑熊 to avoid ambiguity). The term carries no strong cultural connotations like auspiciousness or danger, but appears frequently in ecological education and nature reserves in China.