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Grammatically, that is a choice question:  "is it city[-like] (or not)?"  In other words, is whatever is at question sophisticated / modern?  This phrase, which has been chosen by Sixth Tone* (12/17/24) as one of the top ten Chinese buzzwords of 2024 (I will list the other nine in the Appendix) is composed of two identical English loanwords and the most common negative particle in Mandarin.

Before explaining this viral phenomenon further, I will show a video featuring "city不city" to demonstrate that it is real:

The "city不city" shtick is sheer genius.  Sooooo cute!

Above all, it shows how seamlessly foreign words, grammar, and phonology can be melded into Sinitic.

It reminds me of this famous skit, "Miss Lin on 'fashion'" (12/2/21), which has been viewed millions of times (I have watched it about thirty times and laugh myself silly every time I do).

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*Sixth Tone's name relates to the number of tones in Mandarin Chinese, but also is stated to carry more metaphorical meaning as well. Mandarin Chinese has four active tones and a fifth dropped tone that has less prominence than the other four. Because of the language's five tones, the publication's name refers to an ideal of expanding beyond traditionally-reported items in Anglophone media, making it the "sixth tone".

(Wikipedia)

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Selected readings

• "Chinese Buzzwords of the year 2019: plagiarism / stealing a shtick" (1/8/20) — goes into detail about what a gěng 梗 ("shtick") is.
• "Choice-type questions" (2/12/17)

 

Appendix:  the complete list of Sixth Tone buzzwords for 2024

Abstract (抽象, chōuxiàng)

Typically used to refer to non-concrete ideas or representations in art and philosophy, 抽象 (chōuxiàng), or “abstract,” has become the go-to adjective for young Chinese bewildered, confused, or just plain speechless at their peers’ behavior. Return to your dorm to find your roommates pretending to be birds? That’s abstract. Watching noted bad actor Jacky Heung suddenly drop to the ground and start acting like a lizard? Abstract. Trying to explain the concept of “abstract” as a meme in Chinese? You best believe that’s chōuxiàng.  [VHM:  I welcome Language Log readers' explanations of how such bizarre types of behavior may be considered chōuxiàng 抽象 ("abstract").]

Pinned in Place (硬控, yìng kòng)

In the gaming world, 硬控 (yìng kòng) is used to refer to pinning enemies down and keeping them from moving. The term has since broken into the mainstream, as Chinese use it in everyday speech to describe an inability to look away, or mesmerize. Viral videos, incredible performances, or just a juicy bit of gossip — almost anything now has the power to yìng kòng.  [VHM:  lit., "hard / firm / rigid control".]

Beasts of burden (牛马, niúmǎ)

Literally meaning “cattle and horses,” 牛马 (niúmǎ) has become a popular online shorthand for China’s overworked, undervalued employees. The “joke” is that modern workers are expected to toil harder than farm animals — which are too valuable to simply work to death. It turns out that, when overtime is mandatory, even your work ID can start to feel like a yoke.

City or not? (city不city, city bù city)

“City or not?” that is the question — at least it was on Chinese social media in 2024. Spurred by viral posts on Xiaohongshu** by Shanghai-based American Paul Mike Ashton***, users began asking whether everything from soda water to the Great Wall was mod enough, glam enough, and urbane enough to merit the descriptor “city.”

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**Xiǎo hóngshū 小红书 ("Little Red Book"), a wildly popular "social media and e-commerce platform" (source).  The title is a take-off on the common appellation for Máo Zhǔxí Yǔlù 毛主席语录 (Quotations from Chairman Mao Tse-tung).

***Paul Mike Ashton's videos have been viewed hundreds of millions of times, and have even received an official PRC government sign-off.  Ashton grew up in rural Pennsylvania and went to college at the University of North Carolina. (source)

[VHM:  in the illustration, notice the phonetic annotation on 不, one of the most frequent characters in the sinographic writing system.  Note also that the Costa cups are labeled "cha" ("tea") and "coffee"]

Self-imposed hardship (没苦硬吃, méi kǔ yìng chī)

In many ways, life in China has gotten much better since the 1950s and ’60s. But for some elderly Chinese, it can be hard to leave their childhood hardships in the past. Whether due to deeply ingrained habits, a desire for frugality, or simply the belief that pain is gain, it can sometimes seem like they go out of their way to make things difficult for themselves. While this tendency toward “self-imposed hardship” (没苦硬吃, méi kǔ yìng chī****) can often be harmless, other habits, such as refusing to turn on the air conditioner in the summer, can have more dangerous consequences.

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****None of the main online translators get this right.  It basically means "without any actual grounds for bitterness / suffering, [nonetheless] insist on eating (i.e., stomaching) [it]").  For yìng 硬, see item 2 above.

That laid-back vibe⁠ (松弛感, sōngchí gǎn)

The Olympics are a fitness-driven pressure cooker, a once-every-four-years opportunity for athletes to leave their mark on sports history. But for a handful of elite competitors, even an Olympic final can’t shake their sense of calm. Whether it’s Simone Biles yawning ahead of a key routine, or Turkish shooter Yusuf Dikeç scoring silver while dressed for the mall, these athletes’ ability to keep their cool in the most intense moments captured the imaginations of social media users in China, who praised their 松弛感 (sōngchí gǎn*****), or “laid-back vibes.” It just goes to show that there’s no greater skill than making the impossible seem easy.⁠

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*****more literally, "relaxed feeling"

Office stench (班味, bān wèi)

Tired of your work? Desperate for a change? Be careful: Spend too long toiling at a dead-end job and you might find the stench of your office hard to wash off. Young, overworked Chinese are using the term 班味 (bān wèi******), or “office stench,” to describe the lingering malaise that makes everything — from finishing work on time to finding a new, less miserable career — so much harder.

******"shift / team smell / odor / aroma

Greek Gods and Goddesses of __ (古希腊掌管__的神, gǔ xīlà zhǎngguǎn __ de shén)

In Ancient Greek mythology, Zeus was the god of the sky and thunder, Poseidon the god of the sea, and Persephone the goddess of spring. Now, young Chinese are inventing their own pantheons, giving members of the group chat titles like “the Ancient Greek god of cooking” (gǔ xīlà zhǎngguǎn chúyì de shén) or “the Ancient Greek goddess of sleep” (gǔ xīlà zhǎngguǎn shuìjiào de shén). It’s a fun, lighthearted way to reference a friend’s mastery of a given activity.

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*******zhǎngguǎn 掌管 ("be in charge / control of")

Stealth mode (偷感, tōu gǎn)

When you go out to a party or to meet with friends, are you at the center of every photo or do you gravitate toward the edges of the group, hoping to avoid attention? If you’re more the latter, young Chinese have a term to describe you: 偷感 (tōu gǎn) — literally “thief vibes” — capturing a strong sense of social inhibition. This type of person tends to be uncomfortable in public settings, avoids posting about study habits or weight loss regimens, and prefers to celebrate achievements in private.

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For gǎn 感, see item 6 above.

Mild-mannered vs. extra-strong (淡人 vs. 浓人, dàn rén vs. nóng rén)

If the various acronyms of the MBTI personality test are too much for you to keep track of, there’s now a simple alternative: “mild-mannered” (淡人, dàn rén) vs. “extra-strong” (浓人, nóng rén). As an easy way to navigate their various friends, Chinese youth have started to split them into these two groups. But with all of life’s flavors, striking a balance between the two will likely lead to the best outcome.

Compiled by Zhang Ru and Xie Anran, with contributions from Zhang Yila. Editor: Tom Arnstein.

[h.t. Don Keyser and a special thanks to Neil Schmid, who has been living and working in China for many years and who uses Chinese social media on a daily basis, so can verify firsthand that "city不city" is not a fluke.]

December 18, 2024 @ 5:30 am · Filed by Victor Mair under Borrowing, Grammar, Idioms, Phonetics and phonology

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