Eveline Chao's Blog: Niubi! News

Exciting discovery: people keep NIUBI! by the toilet and splash poo on it. I've made it!



PS: I don't update this blog that often, but often update the NIUBI! Facebook page. You can like it at: https://www.facebook.com/NiubiBook.

My May language column for "That's Shanghai" and "That's Beijing" is about T'rung, a minority language in China being documented by a linguist named Ross Perlin. "Many people know there are 56 officially classified ethnic groups in China; less know that there are more than 200 languages spoken throughout the country..."

Hope you enjoy!

Talking T'rung - Keeping China's Minority Languages Alive

Also, if you'd like to be kept updated about not just my language columns, but Chinglish, memes, & other amusing China ephemera, you can go "Like" my book on Facebook!

One of the coolest things to ever happen to me - someone wrote their dissertation about my book! Clara Longhi, a longtime NIUBI! fan who recently graduated with a degree in Specialized Translation, English/French-Italian, at the Unviersity of Bologna (and studied Chinese as a third language), says: "I found that your book was very inspiring for various insights into contemporary Chinese language and culture, therefore I translated some parts of the book into Italian and wrote some chapters about Chinese contemporary culture."

谢谢 to Clara for sending me this link to an article she wrote about her dissertation & my book. Sadly, since it's in Italian I can't actually read it :P But, here's the link!

Niubi! Il lessico della nuova società

Giving a little love to my friend Ana Fuentes for the publication of the English translation of her book (by Penguin): From the Dragon's Mouth: 10 True Stories that Unveil the Real China. You can read an excerpt here:

Living Underground

They are called rats, and they have become a symbol of Beijing’s red-hot real estate market. Because of soaring housing costs, there are at least a million people living underground, only able to afford a rented room in the basements of skyscrapers or converted bomb shelters in their nation’s capital. Obsessed with the possibility of a Soviet nuclear attack, in 1969 President Mao Zedong ordered the construction of underground shelters that would stretch for eighteen miles beneath the city, able to accommodate half of the population if war ever broke out. The subterranean city center was rife with holes from all the tunneling, like a giant Swiss cheese. A half-century after their construction began, parts of this underground city have been converted into living quarters. This is the only housing option for many students, waiters, hairdressers, office workers, the newly divorced starting their lives over, and many others trying to eke out a living...

I heard from a Chinese friend in Beijing that this is the new slang everyone's saying these days. Am trying to learn more about it but for now here's the Chinasmack definition:

吊丝
[diào sī / diao4 si1]
noun.
Roughly “loser” or maybe “douchebag” when used negatively but often is used humorously. This term originated on a Baidu discussion forum, and describes someone who is poor, ugly, short, good for nothing, a failure in life, and even prone to excessive masturbation. It has become a popular term similar to the Japanese term “otaku” and can be used to refer to both males and females.

http://www.chinasmack.com/glossary#吊丝

My March language column for That's Shanghai & That's Beijing is about the "silent period" stage of second-language acquisition:

Mum's the Word

"Ask enough expat parents, and you’ll eventually find someone whose child, upon moving to China, spent months as a near-mute. Then one day out of the blue, they began spouting fluent streams of Chinese..."

Am SUPER excited to share this - my first piece for The Daily Beast!

China’s Glamorous First Lady Peng Liyuan Saving the Communist Party With Song

Here's my latest piece of writing - on WeChat, an addictive but problematic Chinese messaging app:

All Eyes Are on WeChat, Including the Chinese Government's

Woot! My book is currently in the same room as Tony Award-winning playwright David Henry Hwang (w/the coffee cup in background), & being held by Chinese avant-garde playwright Meng Jinghui!

Here's my most recent piece of writing!

Hong Kong Is Now Jailing China's Baby Formula Smugglers - The illicit white powder Chinese parents can't get enough of