chrix Posted December 20, 2009 at 11:37 PM Report Share Posted December 20, 2009 at 11:37 PM (edited) I've already scheduled a text on "Christmas chengyu" for my chengyu column, which is due to appear on Christmas Eve, and in the course of preparing for it I've come across a number of chengyu that might capture the Christmas spirit (or might not), and I'd like to hear your opinions on those, and suggest some more, if you can think of some. I'm of course concerned that some of those will primarily conjure up images of 春節 (so let me know as well if a chengyu from the list below primarily evokes images of the Chinese New Year)... I'm also aware that a lot of these chengyu can be used in a variety of situations, but since Christmas is not a Chinese holiday, there aren't that many specifically Christmas-y ones... • 平安喜樂 (this is not a chengyu, but I'm told this is a collocation specifically used by Christians, would be great to get more confirmation on this) • 張燈結綵 • 瑞雪兆豐年 • 興高采烈 • 喜氣洋洋 • 火樹銀花 • 美輪美奐 • 鑼鼓喧天 • 駢肩累喠 • 笙歌鼎沸 • 闔家團圓 • 五彩繽紛 • 皓如繁星 • 熙熙攘攘 And happy holidays, everyone! Edited December 21, 2009 at 01:46 AM by chrix Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trien27 Posted December 21, 2009 at 01:31 AM Report Share Posted December 21, 2009 at 01:31 AM will primarily conjure up images of 春節 (so let me know as well if a chengyu from the list below primarily evokes images of New Year) 春節 = Chinese New Year, not New Year, aka the one on January 1st. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrix Posted December 21, 2009 at 01:34 AM Author Report Share Posted December 21, 2009 at 01:34 AM Yes, I know that, and I don't think it was all that ambiguous from the context.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trien27 Posted December 21, 2009 at 01:35 AM Report Share Posted December 21, 2009 at 01:35 AM 瑞雪兆豐年 瑞雪兆豐年 = Lucky snow will predict an abundant year [full of harvest, obviously concerning farmers having a full harvest the following year after seeing snowfall as a sign.] You could say this will make you think of a new year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrix Posted December 21, 2009 at 01:38 AM Author Report Share Posted December 21, 2009 at 01:38 AM Yeah, I think this is one of those chengyu that is leaning more towards the New Year. Though in the West, Christmas season is also a period of reflection about what's coming next year, so it might somewhat work as well, I don't know... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trien27 Posted December 21, 2009 at 01:42 AM Report Share Posted December 21, 2009 at 01:42 AM Yes, I know that, and I don't think it was all that ambiguous from the context.... You and I both know that, but others might not know it yet. The ambiguity stems from the fact that there's different terms in Chinese: 春节, spring festival = Chinese New Year's Day, in which the date varies annually on the Gregorian calendar, while 元旦, born on the first day = New Year's Day on the Gregorian/Western calendar, aka January 1st. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrix Posted December 21, 2009 at 01:46 AM Author Report Share Posted December 21, 2009 at 01:46 AM There's a couple of more terms such as 新年, 正月 but you should open a new thread for those. I'll change my text above and let's get back to the Christmas chengyu... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trien27 Posted December 21, 2009 at 01:46 AM Report Share Posted December 21, 2009 at 01:46 AM Most of the other "chengyu" you've posted could be used for any "happy occasion". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrix Posted December 21, 2009 at 01:54 AM Author Report Share Posted December 21, 2009 at 01:54 AM I would agree. So I guess I should rephrase my question slightly, which of the chengyu above are especially apt to conjure up an image of the Christmas season in the West, with the atmosphere, at home with your family, in the streets and shops that are decorated etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tooironic Posted December 21, 2009 at 07:31 AM Report Share Posted December 21, 2009 at 07:31 AM Let's put it this way: can you think of any English idioms which conjure up images of the Chinese New Year? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gato Posted December 21, 2009 at 07:42 AM Report Share Posted December 21, 2009 at 07:42 AM can you think of any English idioms which conjure up images of the Chinese New Year? "Full house"? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrix Posted December 21, 2009 at 08:53 AM Author Report Share Posted December 21, 2009 at 08:53 AM I don't think you can compare it like that. Idioms have quite a different function in both languages. Using too many of them in English quickly runs the risk of sounding too cliché, while not necessarily so in Chinese. That said, check these links out: http://www.ftd.de/div/podcast/business-english/:phrases-and-idioms-christmas-idioms/450927.html http://www.phrases.org.uk/bulletin_board/38/messages/1398.html I'm not totally happy with them, but you get the idea. Like the romantic image of "White Christmas" (maybe not so much an issue at a place where Christmas is spent on the beach ), or other expressions such as "Next year I'm off her Christmas card list" alluding to the practice of sending cards around this time of year etc.., Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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