Language

All news and posts of our editorial team on the topic

China crafts its own word of the year
It becomes increasingly obvious that China's word of the year is picked by the party and has little to do with online voting. This year, the commission presented words like "stability" and "20th Party Congress" as winners of the vote. The true submissions, such as "white" in reference to the protests, were already removed in the preliminary round. continue reading →
Say it in Chinese: 2-4-4-2
The ideologists among China's party leaders are clearly fond of numbers. They can be found in many of Mao Zedong's slogans, and Xi Jinping also likes to use catchy ciphers. In the last ten years, the political language in China changed; with a dictionary alone, some terms in the party language cannot be deciphered. Very good language skills, effort and the Internet can help. continue reading →
‘No clue, but sounds awesome!’
So To Speak – Episode 72, 10.10.2022不明觉厉bùmíngjuélìWhen learning Chinese, the classical four-part proverbs – the so-called Chengyu (成语 chéngyǔ) – open up a fascinating new universe. In just four inconspicuous characters, these linguistically pocket-sized aphorisms summarize profound wisdom and empirical values that have been passed down in China for centuries. The only catch: Chengyu can […] continue reading →
Chinese lessons made in Taiwan
Taiwan's plans are ambitious. By 2025, the democratic island republic wants to establish 100 language centers around the world to popularize "Taiwanese Mandarin" and introduce foreigners to Taiwan's culture. The government in Taipei hopes that the program could also help the diplomatically isolated country to increase international exchange. continue reading →
Pot carrier
I will not allow myself to become a pot carrier. Perhaps you should simply throw this phrase into the room as a ruse the next time someone wants to turn you into a scapegoat. This linguistic maneuver will certainly cause confusion at first and will gain you time to shift the blame. If there are […] continue reading →
Françoise Hauser – author of China books
When Françoise Hauser had just earned her Master’s degree in Sinology in the mid-1990s, a visit to the employment office recommended she choose a different career path. “Back then, there wasn’t much anyone could do with Chinese,” says the writer, who was born in Mainz in 1967. After a brief but profound interlude at a […] continue reading →
Greetings, comrades!
Good socialists call each other "comrade." Don't they? In China, the term was long claimed by homosexuals. Now Xi Jinping has revived it – in the hope of reversing the decline in party discipline. continue reading →
The Overtime Dog: jiābāngou 加班狗
In the English language, man’s best friend often doesn’t come off well, for example, when you are “working like a dog”, or when someone turned out to be a “mean dog”, when everything else goes “to the dogs” or you end up being “sick as a dog”. Even in Chinese, our barking four-legged friends do […] continue reading →
Antidialect campaign
Officially, China’s Communist Party attributes great importance to minorities in the country. However, it is actually focusing on cultural and linguistic unification. The central government has launched a nationwide campaign to promote High Chinese, also known as Mandarin. This is ultimately directed against the many dialects spoken in the country. At least 85 percent of […] continue reading →
AI decodes ancient classics
Chinese and US scientists have used artificial intelligence to catalog ancient Chinese texts in a database. The technology helps to identify tens of thousands of forgotten characters to make them readable for today's readers. The effort is paying off by making Chinese classics accessible to millions. continue reading →
The true meaning behind CCP phrases
"New Democratic Revolution"? "Remaining true to original aspirations"? These phrases made by the Chinese Communist Party often carry a different meaning than they suggest. China experts strive to decipher China's web of phrases; after all, they shed light on future policy. Xi Jinping has become particularly adept at twisting words – and many Western politicians fall for it without even realizing it. continue reading →
Cute
Teddy bouquets, piggy steamed bread and Gucci handbags with cuddly cartoon kittens? No one can avoid a little “meng” in everyday Chinese life! 萌 méng actually originally means “to sprout” or “to bud,” but today the term is predominantly used as an adjective in the sense of “cute, adorable, cute.” Like Japan’s kawaii culture, which […] continue reading →
Caspar Welbergen – Networking in Education
Caspar Welbergen was initially put off by his first trip to Beijing. As a schoolboy, he was so overwhelmed by the foreignness of this new culture that he chose to ignore China for the time being. At the time, the 38-year-old had already been taking Chinese lessons for three years. “I drove across Frankfurt to […] continue reading →
Suspicion of espionage: Japan targets Confucius Institutes
The Japanese Ministry of Education has announced an official investigation into the 14 Confucius Institutes in the country. The agency wants to investigate suspicions about whether the institutions are being used by the Chinese government for propaganda purposes and may be collaborating with the country’s intelligence services, the Nikkei agency reported. The host Japanese universities […] continue reading →
Verena Menzel
Many Germans who regularly travel to China always have to live with one shortcoming: They don’t speak the language. According to Verena Menzel, offers at universities and adult education centers can only teach learners the basics. “Chinese is a very context-oriented language and it is a different culture,” explains the literary scholar. Practice and practical […] continue reading →