Chinese Measurement System

[Ian_Lee]

In Mainland China, the metric system has replaced the Chinese system completely. In HK, even though the government officially adopted the metric system a long time ago, the Chinese (and the British) system is still the king.

In terms of weight, you go buy vegetable/seafood in the market according to catty/pound. The scales show the weight in catty/pound and hardly any foodstall understands how much if you try to buy one kilogram.

In all the jewelry stores, their sign shows the daily buy/sell price of Gold and Silver in term of tael. All those customers from Mainland have to refigure out how much one tael is equivalent to grams.

In fact, in early '80s there had been a comical movie called "Half Catty Eight Taels" which meant break-even in HK idiom.

[skylee]

I am quite comfortable with the metric system but here in HK people use all types of system.

Recently I bought a silk quilt in Chongqing and the measurement used was 市斤. I was totally confused (so sometimes somewhere in China some traditional measurement units are still in use).

[Ian_Lee]

Skylee:

Well, people in HK live in a 800-sq ft apt, buy a liter of Coke in Wellcome Supermarket while another two catties of Choi Sum in the foodstall a block away.

I also feel amazing how they can interchange all the different systems.

But lately when I bought drapery in the Lowu Commercial Center in Shenzhen, the salesgirl from Chaozhou kept telling me how many yards of cloth I needed.

The ruler she used was marked by inches and feet but not meter.

I heard the 市斤 that some use in Mainland just consists of 14 taels instead of 16.

[Quest]

1克＝1gram

50克＝一市两

10市两＝1市斤

1公斤＝2市斤＝20市两＝1000克

半斤只有五两

We use 斤 and 两 in the Mainland, but they are not the same as the 一斤十六两 in Hongkong.

[skylee]

Sam Hui sings -

"出o左半斤力 想話籮番足八兩

家陣惡搵食 邊有半斤八兩咁理想"

So it is even worse in Mainland 'cos 半斤 = 五兩

BTW, do people say "半斤八兩" in mainland to mean "不相伯仲"?

[Ian_Lee]

I would say Mainland system is very confused -- even more confused than that of HK.

After adopting the metric system, probably people were getting unused to the large unit -- kilogram -- which is much more than either pound or catty.

So they invented the "shi-catty" which is half the kilogram.

Such move fits HK idiom: "Take down your pants to fart".

[skylee]

I would say Mainland system is very confused -- even more confused than that of HK.

After adopting the metric system' date=' probably people were getting unused to the large unit -- kilogram -- which is much more than either pound or catty.

So they invented the "shi-catty" which is half the kilogram.

Such move fits HK idiom: "Take down your pants to fart".[/quote']

I wouldn't say that. People use what fits their needs. That's all. (But different systems could be confusing to outsiders.)

[Quest]

半斤八兩 is used everywhere.

[keikei]

In the past one 斤 was equal to 16 两 in China. so people say 半斤八两.

[smithsgj]

What does 半斤八兩 (and 不相伯仲) mean? Is it like 6 of 1 and half a doz of the other?

[Guest Cipher]

What does 半斤八兩 (and 不相伯仲) mean? Is it like 6 of 1 and half a doz of the other?

exactly

[skylee]

半斤八兩/不相伯仲 = 差不多

(to describe items/people which are similarely good/bad etc)

e.g. 兩位候選人的實力不相伯仲/半斤八兩/差不多。

[smithsgj]

Thanks both of you. As Cipher says, = the English expression I gave. It's satisfying when an idiom is so similar in two languages (though it makes one wonder about the origin). A thread for this, one fine day.