Chinglish sweeping around the world

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(People's Daily Online) 14:41, August 29, 2013

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(People's Daily Overseas Edition)

English expressions contributed by China in recent years:

shuanggui: quasi-investigation
chengguan: municipal officers
don' train: bullet train
jiujielity: hesitation
geilivable: awesome
Chimerica: China and America
We two who and who? : We are good friends
Go and look! : We will see
No money no talk! : Without money, any talk is spared

On the video website of The Wall Street Journal, a word has attracted people's attention. In order to report the news that Chinese elderly women help increased the gold price, The Wall Street Journal creates the word "dama" (elderly women), an English word which comes from Chinese Pinyin. This shows that English expressions which are contributed by China have integrated into every aspect of international life.

Pinyin becomes English words

Words that are "borrowed" from another language, such as "dama", are called "loanwords". This is not a new phenomenon in linguistics.

Since modern times, Chinese vocabulary has borrowed many English words, such as "copy", "cool" and "cola". These words are vivid and highly literal. Retaining the English pronunciation, they can express their Chinese meaning.

Meanwhile, English words that derive from Chinese Pinyin can be seen in overseas media reports. About 10 years ago, foreigners took delight in talking about "guanxi" (relationship). Unlike "relationship", "guanxi" is used to describe the unique and complex relative network in China. Later, this word is included in Rules and Networks, a business college textbook used in many English-speaking countries.