Start here
Chengyu: Four-Character Idioms
An introduction to chengyu, the compact four-character idioms of Chinese: where they come from, how they are built, and why educated speakers use them.
Language and Writing
Idioms, Names and Wordplay
Sayings, names, riddles and lucky meanings.
Chinese Personal Names and Their Meanings
How Chinese personal names work: surname-first order, one- and two-character given names, generation names, and the hopes parents often put into a name.
Chinese Proverbs about Family, Work and Time
A look at well-known Chinese proverbs about family harmony, diligence and the value of time, and the everyday values behind them.
Colors and Their Meanings in Chinese Culture
Traditional associations of red, yellow, white, black, green and other colors in Chinese culture, with notes on the variety and change behind them.
Courtesy Names and Nicknames
Why educated people in imperial China took a second name as adults, how courtesy names and art names worked, and how nicknames carry on the habit today.
Greetings and Polite Phrases in Chinese
Common Chinese greetings and polite phrases, from nǐ hǎo and xièxie to modest speech, honorific forms and the way politeness is shown in conversation.
Idiom Stories from Ancient Fables
Retellings of well-known Chinese fables behind everyday idioms, including the stump-watching farmer, the snake with feet and the sword in the river.
Lantern Riddles and Chinese Wordplay
How lantern riddles and Chinese puns work with character shapes, sounds and tones, and why wordplay is so closely tied to festival time.
Lucky and Unlucky Numbers in Chinese Culture
Why some numbers are seen as lucky or unlucky in Chinese culture: sound-alike words, regional differences, and how the beliefs show up in daily life.
The Old Hundred Surnames
A look at the Hundred Family Surnames, where Chinese surnames come from, how common they are, and the role of family names in identity and ancestry.
Related topics