“冬至” (dong1 zhi4,
the Winter
Solstice
) implies the arrival of the coldest time in winter. The solar term
also tells that daytime on that day is the shortest in a year. The solar term is
usually on 21st - 23rd of December.
“天时人事日相催，冬至阳生春又来” - by Du Fu, it is
a famous verse in ancient poetry. This poem mainly tells the story of the rapid change every
day, and soon to the Winter Solstice, the daylight gets longer after the Winter Solstice, the weather is warming up. Also, the Spring is coming back.
The Winter Solstice began more than 2,500 years ago in the
Spring and Autumn period. The most common custom of the Winter Solstice is to
eat dumplings.
Women can be difficult to understand. Men often find themselves going crazy trying to figure us out. It’s hard to know what we’re thinking! This is especially true when it comes to women in China. Many Chinese ladies will say yes when what they mean is no, especially when they are communicating with their boyfriend or husband. In general Chinese women tend to be more restrained, and do not express themselves in a direct way. So how can you know what we are thinking? Let me reveal to you “8 Love’s Lies” help you understand their true meaning.
1. 你好笨啊！ nǐ hǎo bèn a!
You are so stupid!
If a Chinese woman says this, don’t take it negatively. This is actually an expression of love and affection. Sometimes, we use “笨 (bèn)” to describe our boyfriends in an endearing manner. Chinese women often use negative words like “笨 (bèn) stupid” or “蠢 (chǔn) stupid” when talking with people who are close to them because they know these words they can use freely. The relationship between them is so close, they feel comfortable being free with their language and making fun. This is a way to express their close relationship. Other similar expressions include:
小笨蛋 (xiǎo bèndàn): Small stupid, Little fool.
Example:
Xiǎo bèndàn, nǐ zhēn de hǎo kě’ài.
小笨蛋, 你真的好可爱.
Little fool, you are so lovely.
2. 你好讨厌！ nǐ hǎo tǎoyàn!
You are so annoying!
Some Chinese women use this sentence when they want to act cute. Usually, when they say this expression the real intention is “you are amusing” or “you are lovely and I like you.”
3. 我没事！/ 我很好！wǒ méishì! / Wǒ hěn hǎo!
I’m okay! / I’m very good!
Trust me, if a Chinese lady says “我没事 (wǒ méishì)” or “我很好 (wǒ hěn hǎo)”–most of time they are meaning the exactly opposite: “I am not okay.” Like many women, Chinese women will often try to hide feelings of depression, anger, or cover up the fact that they have made any mistakes. By saying this they are able to avoid the inconvenience of having to reflect on these things. They want to keep you from worrying, too. But don’t be fooled. When they say they’re okay, they are really saying is, “I’m not okay, and I’m not very happy.”
4. 太贵了！tài guì le!
Too expensive!
If you go shopping with your Chinese girlfriend, she might say “太贵了 (tài guì le).” So how do you think you would react? Oftentimes men will go out of the store and compare the price of other items. This is NOT the thing to do in China. Because “太贵了 (tài guì le) Too expensive” actually means “she really, really likes this thing.” If your lady is shopping with you and sees something very special, her first reaction is to go forward and check it carefully. If she sees the price is high, she will often say “太贵了，我们不需要买。(tài guì le, wǒmen bù xū yāo mǎi) It’s too expensive, we don’t need to buy it.” At this time, the considerate man should know that the woman really likes the item, not that she doesn’t like it.
5. 我不在乎。wǒ bù zàihū.
I don’t care.
“我不在乎 (wǒ bùzàihū) I don’t care.”- again, the opposite. She totally cares. For example: Some females show a careless attitude toward their boyfriend’s ex-girlfriends. They even say “我不在乎 (wǒ bùzàihū) I don’t care.” Don’t be fooled! Men need to know that this is often said by women who do not want to appear jealous. But the truth is, if your girlfriend cares for you, she cares about your history. So don’t get tricked on this one. She definitely cares.
6. 我再也不想见到你! wǒ zài yě bùxiǎng jiàn dào nǐ!
I don’t want to see you again!
Women often use words like “我再也不想见到你 (wǒ zài yě bùxiǎng jiàn dào nǐ) I don’t want to see you again!” to hide their disappointment. This is just a kneejerk statement. Don’t take her literally when she says this. When you hear this phrase, know that she just might need a little space, or even a hug and some affection to show her how much you care. These bad moods may come often, so don’t be intimidated by them.
7. 你是一个好人。 nǐ shì yīgè hǎorén.
You are a good guy.
If a Chinese lady says to you: “你是一个好人 (nǐ shì yí gè hǎorén) You are a good person.” you have the right to feel disappointed. Because Chinese women only express this kind of admiration to a guy they are officially putting in the friend zone. What sounds like admiration is just a basic declaration of: “You are just a friend and I’m not interested in you romantically.” In Chinese, we say is “发好人卡 (Fā hǎorén kǎ) send good guy card.” or that “好人卡＝ In the friend zone”.
8. 没关系，你去忙吧！ méiguānxì, nǐ qù máng ba!
It does not matter, you can go to work!
Usually women will say “没关系，你去忙吧 (méiguānxì, nǐ qù máng ba) It does not matter, you can go to work!” when you say that you are tied up with work and can’t make time right then to be with her. But you should know that when they say this they do in fact want your company, then and there. Most of time, when it comes to either your work or your girlfriend, your girlfriend hopes that she is the top priority.
Happy Chinese
New Year! It’s now the year of the pig! As the zodiac cycle repeats every 12
years, if you were born within the Chinese Calendar year starting in 1923,
1935, 1947, 1959, 1971, 1983, 1995, 2007, and 2019, then you belong to the Year
of Pig.
Cultural Activities
Chinese New
Year, also known as Lunar New Year (农历新年 nóng lì xīn
nián) is seen as the most important time of the year in Chinese culture. To
celebrate the festival, there are various rituals and customs that the Chinese
people follow, one of which is to visit family and friends. Chinese New Year is
an opportunity to reunite with family, friends, and loved ones. In practice,
visiting them at their homes is a custom called 拜年 (bài nián).
During these
visits, it’s common practice for people to dress in red, as this colour
symbolizes ‘good luck’. Generally, people exchange festive gifts, while senior
members of the group will give out ‘red envelopes’, which are in fact cash
gifts, to the more junior, unmarried members of the family. This act is
considered as ‘sending good luck’ to others. Furthermore, everyone would greet
one another with New Year blessings, wishing each other good fortune, health,
and wealth.
Be aware, though, that there are some
gifts that are taboo, and which you shouldn’t bring at all. Here’s a handy list
of gifts to be avoided: ‘Beware of Certain Taboos’. Always make sure that you
are giving the right gift so that you will not accidentally insult anyone.
Greetings During the New Year of the Pig
Apart from the
traditional New Year greetings, below are 6 Chinese New Year greetings that
relate to ‘pigs’ (猪 zhū), and are
suitable for use this year!
1. 猪年进步 (zhū nián jìn bù)
‘‘May you make progress in the Year of Pig’’
‘猪年’ represents
‘the Year of Pig’, and ‘进步’ means ‘to
improve’. This statement is a general greeting and is applicable in various
situations during Chinese New Year.
2. “猪”事顺利
诸事顺利 (zhū
shì shùn lì)
“May all things work out smoothly”
‘诸事’ refers to ‘all
things, different things’, and ‘顺利’ means
‘smooth’. The phrase can be used to greet people of all ages. ‘诸 (zhū)’ shares
the same sound as ‘pig, 猪 (zhū)’,
therefore it’s particularly popular to be used in the Year of the Pig.
3. “猪”事如意
诸事如意 (zhū
shì rú yì)
“May all things go as you wish”
Similar to ‘诸事顺利’, the word ‘诸’ from ‘诸事如意’ also takes the
exact pronunciation as ‘pig’, which is ‘猪 (zhū)’.This
makes it suitable to be used during the New Year of the Pig. Yet, ‘如意’ has a slightly
different meaning from ‘顺利’, which means
‘as one wishes’.
4. “猪”报平安
竹报平安(zhú bào
píng ān)
“May you be peaceful and safe”
The phrase is a
traditional idiom that people used when sending mail back home to reassure
their family that everything was well and peaceful after being away from home
for a long time. Nowadays, the phrase is a nice blessing to wish someone peace
and safety. ‘竹 (zhú)’ has a similar sound to ‘猪 (zhū)’, which
means pig, therefore it is particularly appropriate to be used this year.
5. 胸有成“猪”
事事胸有成竹 (shì
shì xiōng yǒu chéng zhú)
“May you have a well-designed plan for all
things”
‘事事’ equals to
‘everything’, and ‘胸有成竹’ is a
traditional idiom indicating one has a thorough plan in advance before any kind
of work. This is a nice saying especially between businesses or corporations.
Also, ‘竹 (zhú)’, having a similar sound to ‘pig,
猪 (zhū)’, makes it more meaningful for the Year of the Pig.
6. 猪笼入水
(zhū lóng rù shuǐ)
“May wealth flow in”
This saying is
more often used among Southern Chinese. ‘猪笼’ literally
means ‘pig cage’, while ‘入’ and ‘水’ mean ‘enter’
and ‘water’ respectively. ‘Water flowing in a pig cage’ symbolizes wealth
flowing into your pocket, therefore it’s a good way to wish one wealth and
prosperity. In particular, the phrase consists of the word ‘猪 (zhū), pig’, so
this year is the right time to use this greeting.
As was
mentioned, Chinese New Year is a time for families and friends to reunite and
get-together in happy gatherings. It is traditionally a joyful time for
everyone, and it is also a time for renewal and hopes. Since it is a new year,
it is also a time to start over and make things better in our lives moving
forward.
Wish you all a wonderful and joyful Year
of the Pig!
Writing, the carrier of culture and the symbol of
human civilization, first appeared in Sumer. Like other ancient languages of
Egypt and India, ancient Sumerian symbols have been lost in the process of
history, but only Chinese characters still remain in use today. They have
played a significant role in the development of Chinese language and culture.
This article intends to display how Chinese characters were created and how
they were simplified from the ancient form of writing to more abstract.
Chinese characters, in their initial forms, were
beautiful and appropriately reflected images in the minds of ancient Chinese
that complied with their understanding of reality. Chinese people selected the
way of expressing meaning by figures and pictures, and Chinese characters began
with drawings.
Three Myths in Ancient Times
It is difficult to determine the specific time when
the Chinese characters emerged. There are three old myths about the origin of
Chinese characters. The first refers to the belief that Chinese characters were
created by Fu Xi — the first of Three
Sovereigns in ancient China, who has drawn the Eight Trigrams which have
evolved into Chinese characters. The mysterious Eight Trigrams used for
divination is composed of the symbols “–” and “– –”, representing Yang and Yin
respectively.
Yin and Yang go together, constituting eight areas
with three couples in one group, indicating different natural phenomena and
things. But these basic symbols are very far from the oracle bone inscriptions
(the inscriptions on animal bones and tortoise shells). Therefore, the first
statement had been denied by most of the sinologists. It’s hard to believe that
Eight Trigrams are the origin of Han characters.
The second one is that Chinese characters were
created by the use of knots. It is said that recording events by knots started
with Emperor Shen Nung (approximately 2838–2698 BC), so Chinese characters were
invented by Shen Nung. Many experts thought that people made knots on ropes to
remember something and knots could have been used by almost all primitive
people, but it is not possible that they evolved into the writing or functioned
as a language. That indicates, it is impossible that Chinese characters were
created by the use of knots.
The last popular myth is that Cang Jie, historical
chronicler of the Yellow Emperor (ancestor of the Chinese people) over 5,000
years ago, was the inventor of Chinese characters. According to ancient
writings, Cang Jie had four eyes and four pupils which could observe different
things of the world. When he raised his head he could understand the form of
the stars in the sky; when he lowered his head he could distinguish the tracks
of birds and animals on the ground.
Therefore, he invented a lot of symbols to
represent different objects and affairs, which were the oldest Chinese
characters. When he invented the characters, the Heaven rained the grain and
the ghosts cried at night. Xunzi (the book collecting the elaborately argued
essays by Hsun Tzu - a Chinese Confucian
philosopher) and other ancient books also recorded the myth of Cang Jie.
Evidently, it is hard to accept that the characters were created solely by an
individual. The characters have been, most probably, invented by a number of
people, each of whom might have engraved some figures or draw some pictures.
Cang Jie, if only be had existed, would be one of the very scholarly people who
could collect and settle the different symbols and tell people the
corresponding meanings so that people could remember something of importance in
their lives. Furthermore, from the scientific perspective, the appearance and
forming of any kind of writing have to meet the needs of social life must
surely have experienced a considerably long period of trial and development.
Chinese characters are a huge and complicated
system, and they could have come into being over a long course of laboring and
living. However, the relationship between Cang Jie and the creation of Chinese
characters cannot be completely denied. The most important information which we
can discover from the previous records is that Chinese characters are
ideographic and have originated from drawings.
Predecessor of Ancient
Chinese Characters
The oracle scripts on the tortoise shells and animal
bones in the Shang Dynasty (1711–1066 BC) were deemed the oldest characters.
However, characters of the Shang Dynasty we can see today is mature and had
been developed, so Chinese characters might have emerged long before that
dynasty, perhaps as early as the New Stone Age during which period Chinese
people carved and painted many symbols on pottery. These symbols had a
significant relationship with Chinese characters and were the most important
materials to research the origin of Chinese characters.
Archaeological researchers discovered many geometric
symbols on earthenware excavated from Banpo Village and Jiangzhai Village in
Xi’an City, Shanxi Province. Their etchings, consisting of lines, were carved
during the Yangshao Culture period about 6,000 years ago. They are too simple
and abstract to figure out their meanings, although some of the regular symbols
repeated several times. It should be mentioned that there are similar symbols
on unearthed relics in ruins of the same period of other cultures. These symbols,
which have some certain similarities to the Chinese characters, might well be
the predecessors of the ancient Chinese characters.
The ruins of the Erlitou Culture, which had been
generally identified by Chinese archaeologists to the site of Xia Dynasty (21st - 17th
century BC, the first dynasty in China), were discovered in Erlitou, Henan
Province. More than 20 kinds of symbols, dating back at least 4,000 years,
carved on pottery were unearthed. Some simple number symbols carved on the
surface of pottery such as “一”, “二”, “三”, “M”, “X”, “个”, “十”, “∧” might be used to mark the capacity of earthenware.
The forms of these symbols were very similar to those excavated from Banpo
Village and Jiangzhai Village, and some of them had a close similarity to the
oracle bone inscriptions. However, most of these geometric symbols appeared in
single words but not phrases or sentences, so that we cannot say for certain
that they are actually characters. But the specialists and scholars presumed
from the consistent line structure with the simple characters used now that the
geometric symbols carved on the pottery are probably the genesis of the Chinese
characters.
Chinese characters from the earliest Chinese
hieroglyphs to today’s simple characters have undergone through a very long
process of development which can be divided into two periods: ancient writing
and modern writing. Associated with these two periods, Chinese characters had
experienced several times of evolution into many different script forms. Oracle
bone script of the Shang Dynasty (1711 - 1066 BC) is the earliest systematic form
of Chinese characters inscribed on animal bones and tortoise shells. Then
Chinese characters evolved through the bronze script of the Zhou Dynasty
(1066–256 century BC), seal scrip in the late Zhou Dynasty and Qin Dynasty
(221–206 BC), official script in the Qin Dynasty and the Han Dynasty (206
BC-220 AD) and regular script. Based on pictographs, Chinese characters
gradually developed from the form of drawings to strokes and from complex to
simple ones.
Earliest Characters in China
Oracle bone script (Chinese: 甲骨文, Pinyin: jiăgŭwén) is the
inscription on animal bones and tortoise shells of the Shang Dynasty (1711 - 1066
BC). It was first excavated by the local farmers in Xiaotun Village, Anyang,
Henan Province and was sold as a kind of traditional Chinese medicine called “long”
(dragon bones).
In 1899, Wang Yirong, epigraphist of Qing Dynasty
(1616–1911), who had a great interest in ancient characters, found many
inscriptions on long when he bought traditional Chinese medicine and he thought
these inscriptions were ancient characters.
In 1910, the famous scholar Luo Zhenyu affirmed that
Xiaotun Village was the capital of the Shang Dynasty, called “Yin”. Hereafter,
these inscriptions were designated as Shang script from about 3,000 years ago,
which was of great historical significance.
Now 150,000 pieces of animal bones and tortoise
shells have been unearthed from the ruins of Yin and other places, including
more than 4,500 distinctive characters. As the oracle bone script had the
strong features of pictograph and ideograph, some characters could still be
recognized by people, although in an early stage of development. To that date,
more than 1,700 characters have been interpreted, most of them as prayers by
Shang rulers at divination and sacrificial rites.
Before going on a war or a big hunt, there would be
a harvest to divine the outcome by animal bones and tortoise shells. Of course,
there were a few inscriptions used as simple records.
The oracle bone script from the ruins of Yin
consisting of phrases and simple sentences shows that a well-structured script
with a complete system of written signs has been formed in the early age. In
the past, it had long been thought to be the earliest Chinese characters
discovered in China. However, the new archaeological findings proved that this
script contains not the earliest characters in ancient China. From 1985 to
1986, Chinese archaeologists discovered a primitive village site from the
Longshan Culture period in Chang’an district of Xi’an where animal bones with
carving inscriptions were unearthed. From 1996 to 1997, two bones with
inscriptions were excavated in Hengtai, Shandong Province. At that time, few
excavators believed that the discoveries might be related to characters or
symbols. Unfortunately, most of the excavators had not given enough attention
to these inscriptions which are largely considered to be damaged by moth or
grassroots.
In 2005, Professor Liu Fengjun, a Chinese
archaeologist and ancient characters researcher, found a small bone with an
inscribed pattern in Jinan. He affirmed that the bone was the Neolithic relic
and the inscriptions carved on it were the early characters. In 2007, he
discovered and verified a number of bones with inscriptions collected in
Changle County, Shandong Province. He first made these bones public and
announced the inscriptions above were the Dongyi writing from Longshan Culture
period, dating back some 4,000 - 4,500 years. Compared with the oracle bone
script of the Yin Ruins, these inscriptions without any divination traces were
used to record events. After the further research, the inscriptions carved
above these bones, called “bone inscriptions”, were identified as the earliest
Chinese hieroglyphs by academia. And they were also regarded as the major
source of the oracle bone inscriptions.
The following phase in the evolution of Chinese characters
is represented by symbols inscribed on bronze bells and vessels from the Zhou
Dynasty (1066–256 BC), writing is known as “bronze script”. In addition, the
characters cast in bronze ware are also called 金文 or 钟鼎文 in Chinese (Pinyin: jīnwén or zhōngdĭngwén,
respectively) with “wén” meaning “inscription”, because bronze was called “jīn”
at that time and Zhōng (bell) and Dĭng (tripodal vessels used for sacrifice)
were the symbols of power and position.
In the “Age of Bronze Ware” of China during the
period of Shang and Zhou Dynasties, bronze ware was cast as a container, and
most often as the sacrificial vessels to inscribe great events such as
sacrifice, battle results, trade of slaves, etc. in a style just like the
oracle bone script. In the Shang Dynasty, the inscriptions on bronze ware had
very few characters, the form of which is extremely close to that of the oracle
bone script. The size, complexity, formation of the characters are
inconsistent. However, in the Zhou Dynasty, the characters in bronze
inscriptions were simpler, and the size and formation were more fixed. The
bronze inscriptions looked like drawings but had made significant progress from
pictographic forms to block-shaped linear words we use today.
Toward the end of the Zhou Dynasty, a new script
called the “seal script” (Chinese: 篆书, Pinyin: zhuànshū) begun to be used in Qin State.
This script was usually written on bamboo slips and pieces of silk or inscribed
on rocks and stones. Owing to the regular and symmetric structure, rounded and
graceful lines, it is deemed to be the most beautiful style of characters in
ancient China by calligraphers. It is still used for inscribing names on a seal
today. There are two kinds of seal script: large or great seal script and
lesser or small seal script.
The large seal script (Chinese: 大篆, Pinyin: dàzhuàn) is a
traditional reference to all types of Chinese writing systems used before the
Qin Dynasty. However, due to the lack of research achievements and precision,
scholars often avoid the large seal script, instead of using more specified
terms to the examples of writing. The large seal script was widely used in many
vassal states in the Spring and Autumn Period (770 - 476 BC). It was more regular
and symmetrical than bronze inscription in the writing system. From some
unearthed artworks, the large seal script is generally represented by the stone
drum inscription (in about 770 - 325 BC) which is now popularly recognized as
referring to the stone inscriptions prevailed in Qin State during the Spring
and Autumn period. The stone drum inscription is considered to be a
transitional form from the bronze inscription in the Zhou Dynasty to later
lesser seal script in the Qin Dynasty. Now many scholars pay more attention to
the stone drum inscription because it is one of the most important relics to
research the development of characters and the stone-carving art.
During the new era - the Warring States Period
(457 - 221 BC), Chinese characters used by seven states had different ways of
writing. After the Qin State conquered the other six states and established the
Qin Dynasty (221–206 BC), Emperor Qinshihuang unified characters in order to
strengthen his control. Based on the Large Seal script and rearranging the
variant forms of characters in each state, the unified characters were decreed,
called lesser or small seal script (Chinese: 小篆, Pinyin: xiăozhuàn) which was the official style of
characters in Qin Dynasty used for all the documents of the government. It was
the result of the first extensive simplification and standardization of Chinese
characters. Compared with the oracle bone script and bronze script, in the
lesser seal script, the forms of characters were simpler, the writing method
was consistent, and the character pattern was more orderly. Furthermore, all
the characters were the rough block in shape. However, the lines composing of
the characters were complicated and curved, although they were less similar to
drawings. The Ancient Writing Period, from the earliest known oracle bone
script to the development of the seal script, lasted about 1,160 years. And the
lesser seal script marked the end of the ancient Chinese characters.
In the Qin Dynasty, scholars could not have imaged
that great changes in the form of Chinese characters had happened when they
wrote the lesser seal script rapidly on bamboo slips or wood, i.e. clerical
script or official script. After the unification of China, the seal script was
still popular, but could not satisfy the needs of people because of its
lengthened and curved lines being written were quite time-consuming, so another
faster and convenient style of writing called “clerical script” (Chinese: 隶书, Pinyin: lìshū) appeared
during the late of the Qin Dynasty and the Han Dynasty (206 BC - 220 AD). “Lì”
meant a slave or prisoner in servitude, thus some scholars inferred that the
new style of character was created by the slaves or prisoners serving the state
which dealt with a large number of relatively official documents. In order to
save time, they changed the rounded lines into straight ones which became the
officially approved formal way of writing. There is also a historical legend
which attributed the creation of a clerical script to Cheng Miao, who was said
to have invented it on the orders of Qinshihuang.
However, according to archaeological evidence, all
stages of Chinese writing had taken a long course and could not have been
invented by an individual. In fact, the clerical script, as well, was created in
accumulated work of many people. Furthermore, archaeological discoveries
clearly showed that, besides the lesser seal script in the Qin Dynasty, the
clerical script found favor among ordinaries at that time. Till the Han
Dynasty, the clerical script developed completely mature form and became in
common use not only by ordinary people but also by government officials.
Recently, “Lì” was noted to have the meaning of “affiliate”, so the clerical
script might be the derivative of the seal script.
The Silk Books in tombs of Han Dynasty unearthed at
Mawangdui substantiates the origination and formation of the clerical script
and supplies a gap of calligraphy history. We could observe from the books that
the form of the clerical script totally broke away drawing and was very
different from the seal script. There have been made several modifications and
simplifications to make the Chinese writing convenient and tidy: the curved
lines became somewhat straight strokes; the overall the number of lines were
reduced; some complex components merged into one; the forms of characters were
simplified. Above all, Chinese characters were no longer pictographic but
became more abstract ideographic symbols composed of strokes.
The largest transformation from the seal script to the
clerical script is often referred to as the “clerical change”, after which
there have been few enormous changes to present characters we see today in
general. This change allowed people to write the characters easier and faster.
Thus, the emergence of the clerical script had an important significance in the
evolution of Chinese characters, which marked that the Chinese characters began
to enter the modern writing period.
From the clerical change to the present, it has been
more than 2,200 years. This the period in the historical development of Chinese
characters is still called modern because the structures of Chinese characters
have remained the same until today. Although there has not been any change
about the structures of Chinese characters since the clerical change, the
strokes of Chinese characters have undergone two main stages: regularization
and normalization.
Toward the end of the Han Dynasty, the strokes with
the wavy endings and some thick curvy lines seen in the clerical script became
smooth and straight. This change is known as “regularization” after which the
characters called the regular script (Chinese: 楷书, Pinyin: kăishū) appeared at the end of the Eastern
Han Dynasty (25 - 220) and replaced the clerical script to be the major font of
daily writing. The regular script could serve as an example of learning by the
people generation after generation even up to the present days because it is
much simpler and easier to be written than the clerical script. So many
calligraphers like Zhong Yao in the Three Kingdoms Period (220 - 280 AD), Wang
Xizhi in the Eastern Jin Dynasty (317 - 420 AD), Ouyang Xun, Yan Zhenqing, and
Liu Gongquan in the Tang Dynasty (618 - 907), Su Shi in the Song Dynasty
(960 - 1279) contributed to the regular script as the standard for students to
admire, imitate and learn. It has been the standard and formal writing style
for more than 1,800 years with the widest and longest usage.
Also born in the late Han Dynasty, the cursive and
running styles were the results of the regular script rapidly. The cursive
script broke the block-shaped forms of characters. The lines are vibrating and
strokes are connected with each other. It is hard to identify and read although
it is written in a quick way and the characters are elegant and vigorous. The
running script is writing between the regular script and cursive script. It is
easy to recognize and is extremely fluent and practical. However, these two
styles have never been thought as the standard writing because of the many
variations. Instead, they have been used as a form of art.
We can see from the evolutionary process of Chinese
characters in the past thousands of years that the general trend is moving
towards simplicity. The Chinese characters abandoned complicated and difficult
forms and adopted simpler and easier forms. In this way, the same character has
not only changed the shape in various ways but also simplified the pattern
although its rudimental meaning stayed relatively unchanged. However, many characters
still remained complicated and were difficult to learn. Some have variations
caused by many centuries of use, others arose from a lack of uniformity.
Therefore, from the end of the Qing Dynasty, more
and more scholars started to explore the Chinese character reform, such as
adopting the Latin alphabets, digit symbols or Ryakuji. But these attempts have
failed because of the specificities of the Chinese characters which were
considered as a kind of visual symbols, strong at conveying meaning and aesthetics
and could inspire the imagination and creativity. In order to continuously
overcome the shortcoming of Chinese characters being difficult to be
remembered, written and identified, a special government organization, first
called the Committee for Chinese Language Reform and later the National
Language Commission was established in 1954 and was devoted to the
normalization of the Chinese characters.
In 1955, the “List of the First Group of
Standardized Forms of Variant Characters” was officially published? 1,027
variant characters were abolished, and the remaining characters have been
considered as the “the standard forms of characters”. In 1956, the “Scheme for
Simplifying Chinese Characters” was officially published. In 1964, the “Complete
List of Simplified Characters” was published, and it was republished in 1986.
2,259 complex characters were abolished, and components of the characters were simplified. The list has 2,235
simplified characters in total, and 482 of them are basic. Among these 482
simplified characters, 20 percent were invented in the 1950s, while the other
80 percent were created over several thousand years ago. In 1988, the “List of
Generally Used Characters in Modern Chinese” including 7,000 characters, was
officially publis2hed, and later in the same year, the “List of Frequently Used
Characters in Modern Chinese”, was also officially published. The second list
contains 3,500 characters, which essentially conforms to the use of words in
modern Chinese.
The original forms of Chinese characters, before
being simplified, are often known as “complex characters”, which together with
the characters that were created before the 20th century and had the same
structure since the “clerical change” without being simplified, constitute the
traditional forms of Chinese characters. And they are still in use in Taiwan,
Hong Kong, and Macao. While after almost 50 years of simplifying, systemizing
and standardizing work, Chinese characters are considered normalized. The normalized
forms of Chinese characters referring to the modern Chinese characters consist
of those Chinese characters having been simplified or standardized since the
1950s and the Chinese characters without simplifying until today. They are
officially recognized and used in Mainland China, Singapore, and Malaysia. The
students in Chinese schools now are required to write the modern Chinese
characters as the regular script.
Let’s take a look at these 10 2018 Chinese buzzwords.
1. 锦鲤 (jǐn lǐ)
锦鲤 refers to the Koi fish. Since 锦鲤 represents good luck in 风水(fengshui), Chinese people are very interested in them. Numerous koi fish related tweets are reposted to wish others better health and abundant wealth.
In China and Japan, people have a long history of keeping koi fish which is believed to bring good luck. The tradition is kept on the internet, as “转发锦鲤 (reposting koi fish)”, and it has become a trend on Chinese social medias.
Literally, 佛(fó) means buddha and 系(xì) means system or style. 佛系 refers to a Buddha-like mindset.
For the Chinese youth, being 佛系 means adopting a peaceful state of mind and not caring how others think about them. The popular slogan goes like “都可以/都行(dōu kěyǐ/dōu xíng)” (Anything is okay),“就这样吧(就这样吧)“ (Let it be), "没关系 (méiguānxì)”, (It doesn`t matter),
etc. Somehow, they are regarded as more negative emotions since it seems that some people just simply want to avoid the stresses from competitive surroundings by taking this mindset.
e.g.
A: 什么都行。我无所谓。(Shénme dōu xíng. Wǒ wúsuǒwèi.)
Anything is okay. I don’t mind.
B: 那么佛系？(Nàme fó xì?)
Such buddha-like?
A: 是的，我现在是佛系青年。(Shì de, wǒ xiànzài shì fó xì qīngnián.)
Yes, I’m a buddha-like youth now.
3. Skr
Originally, this sound refers to the car tire friction. Skr was known widely by people because of Chinese young idol Kris Wu who used the term frequently on a show called中国有嘻哈(the Rap of China). It`s very popular among netizens who now somewhat use it for mocking. But at first it was used to express admiration and praise.
Since it sounds similar to the Chinese sound [si ge] which can be transcribed as 是个，死个, etc., thus this sound is also used in many sound related sentences.
e.g.
冷skr人了 à 冷死个人了。(Lěng sǐ gè rénle.)
It`s sooo cold!
你真skr人才。 à 你真是个人才。(Nǐ zhēn shì gè réncái.)
You are such a talent.
4. 杠精 (gàng jīng)
Contrarian, hater
Here 杠 is from the Chinese word “抬杠(táigàng)” which means contradict or talk back. 杠精 describes someone who automatically takes the opposite point-of-view from the person to whom they`re speaking. These people just argue for the sake of arguing.
e.g.
A: 我发现我老板的管理方式真的很有问题。(Wǒ fāxiàn wǒ lǎobǎn de guǎnlǐ fāngshì zhēn de hěn yǒu wèntí.)
I find that my boss’s management style to be really problematic.
B: 美吗？那你显然是没去过九寨沟了。(Měi ma? Nà nǐ xiǎnrán shì méi qùguò jiǔzhàigōule.)
Beautiful? You’ve obviously never seen Jiuzhaigou!
5. 确认过眼神 (quèrèn guò yǎnshén)
Literally 确认过眼神 means “Have confirmed the expression from the eyes.” The netizens use this phrase to express “we can see that from one`s eyes” or “to look somebody in the eyes.”
e.g.
确认过眼神，你就是对的人！(Quèrènguò yǎnshén, nǐ jiùshì duì de rén!)
Looking you in the eyes, you are the correct one!
确认过眼神，他是不理想的人。(Quèrènguò yǎnshén, tā shì bù lǐxiǎng de rén.)
I can see that from his eyes. He is not the ideal one.
6. 官宣 (guān xuān)
官宣 is short for 官方宣布which literally means “an official announcement”. The abbreviated version 官宣 is often used on the internet for netizens to announce something.
e.g.
官宣！我们结婚啦！(Guān xuān! Wǒmen jiéhūn la!)
Official announcement! We are getting married!
我的偶像官宣恋爱了。(Wǒ de ǒuxiàng guān xuān liàn’àile.)
My idol officially announced that she/he is in love.
7. 土味情话 (tǔ wèi qínghuà)
土味情话refers to lines which sound very emotional, romantic, and even embarrassing in some way, though it’s often also used to break the ice.
For netizens, it’s a kind of cold humor composed of love words. Here are some cheesy pick-up lines for you:
I think I know you. Because you look exactly like my next girlfriend.
8. 皮一下 (pí yī xià)
Literally speaking, 皮 means “being naughty” in the Chinese language, which is often used in oral Chinese. 皮一下 indicates making fun of someone or playing a trick, and it sounds a little cute.
e.g.
皮一下很开心。(Pí yīxià hěn kāixīn.)
It`s fun to be naughty.
没事儿就想皮一下。(Méishìr jiù xiǎng pí yīxià.)
I want to play a trick when there is nothing to do.
9. 燃烧我的卡路里 (ránshāo wǒ de kǎlùlǐ)
Literally, this sentence means “burn my calories.” It comes from a song called Calorie which is sung by the hot Chinese girl group 火箭少女 101 (Rocket Girls 101). Its special melody, lyrics, and very contentious singers made the line of this song a hit all over the internet.
10. C位 (C wèi)
C is an abbreviation of the word “center”, so “C位” means the center position. It generally refers to the center of the stage, the artist’s position in the middle, or the most crucial spot of a poster. Just like the one above, 燃烧我的卡路里, this phrase also originated from the girl group 火箭少女101 (Rocket Girls 101).
Apparently, this group really was a hit in 2018. The girls of this group are selected by internet users basing on the reality show 创造101 (Produce 101). There were about 100 trainees to be selected and trained. In the end, only nine girls were left on the stage as the final winners to compose this new girl idol group. The center position trainees would get the best position of the group.
e.g.
投票！让你的偶像C位出道！(Tóupiào! Ràng nǐ de ǒuxiàng C wèi chūdào!)
Vote！Make your idol enter entertainment with the center position!
照相的时候一般领导站C位。(Zhàoxiàng de shíhòu yībān lǐngdǎo zhàn C wèi.)
Normally, the leaders will take the center position when taking photos.
Silent night Holy night All is calm all is bright
‘Round yon virgin Mother and Child Holy infant so tender and mild Sleep in heavenly peace Sleep in heavenly peace Silent night, holy night, Shepherds quake at the sight. Glories stream from heaven afar, Heav'nly hosts sing Alleluia; Christ the Savior is born; Christ the Savior is born. Silent night, holy night, Son of God, love’s pure light. Radiant beams from Thy holy face, With the dawn of redeeming grace, Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth; Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth.
On the other hand, when a social interaction turns sour, astrology can be used to excuse one’s less-than-positive traits—“it’s not my fault, the stars made me this way!”
A: Come on! You have been looking through the menu for ages! Can’t you order quicker?
B: Thanks, but the true love of an Aquarius is freedom.
Xièxie, dànshì Shuǐpíng Zuò de zhēn’ài shì zìyóu.
谢谢，但是水瓶座的真爱是自由。
Skepticism about astrology never vanishes. In case it’s not obvious, there is no scientific basis behind these stellar stereotypes; but even so, when conversing with the gullible, it’s easy to manipulate one’s signs to suit one’s own interests.
When turning down an unwanted suitor, astrology is once again useful. Though it sounds extreme to reject someone based simply on their star sign, many people feel it’s kinder than giving out the real reason:
You are a good person, but an Aries and I are totally incompatible.
Usually, people can take a hint, but sometimes one may encounter really serious astrology experts who won’t easily buy your astral mumbo-jumbo—that’s OK, though, because the stars are nothing if not always ambiguous:
A: I don’t think Aquariuses are all that free-spirited. Many of them really respect rules, and value order.
The trickiest group to deal with is the astrology haters, who may have been the unfortunate victims of bias, and even discrimination, due to their signs: a Virgo turned down for a job, after being labeled an intractable paranoid and control freak; a Gemini suspected of cheating on their spouse; a Scorpio scorned as a cold-blooded grudge holder; a Taurus called an emotionless miser…
When meeting someone who gets sniffy about any constellation-based talk, it’s good to prepare a path of retreat:
A: Astrology is complete nonsense! I am a Leo, but when have I ever been arrogant, bossy, or self-centered?
B: Sure, I’m a Pisces, but I don’t spend all my time daydreaming, either! It’s just for fun, no one takes it seriously.
Shì a, wǒ shì Shuāngyú Zuò, yě méi chéngtiān chénmí yú huànxiǎng a! Bùguò dàjiā jiùshì shuōzhe wán de, méi rén dàngzhēn.
是啊，我是双鱼座，也没成天沉迷于幻想啊！不过大家就是说着玩的，没人当真。
One term, though, seems safe to use: 水逆 (shuǐnì), short for 水星逆行 (Shuǐxīng nìxíng, Mercury in retrograde.) Feel free to blame 水逆 for anything unpleasant, since it’s the common enemy of all the signs.
A: It was the worst week of my life. Everything went wrong!
