Yan Emperor
Historian Mark Edward Lewis agrees that "huang" and "huang" were often interchangeable, but disagreeing with Yang, he claims that "huang" meaning "yellow" appeared first. Based on what he admits is a "novel etymology" likening "huang" to the phonetically close "wang" (the "burned shaman" in Shang rainmaking rituals), Lewis suggests that "Huang" in "Huangdi" might originally have meant "rainmaking shaman" or "rainmaking ritual." Citing late Warring States and early Han versions of Huangdi's myth, he further argues that the figure of the Yellow Emperor originated in ancient rain-making rituals in which Huangdi represented the power of rain and clouds, whereas his mythical rival Chiyou (or the Yan Emperor) stood for fire and drought.