ON THE CHARACTER魅力漢字

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ON THE CHARACTER魅力漢字

Short lived ‘red’ fame in the internet age

網絡時代，“紅”只不過是曇花一現

Now that we find ourselves in a populist paradise where anyone (good or bad) might easily find Andy Warhol’s 15 minutes of fame—be it by footage of carnal acts in the romantic setting of the UNIQLO fitting room or by bold and largely inadvisable political statements online—red, or紅 (hóng), has become the most sought after color of them all. To become “web red”, or 網紅 (wǎnghóng, online celebrity), is a dream many hold.

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Red is undoubtedly China’s favorite color, with connotations of auspiciousness, revolution, and now a large and diverse internet celebrity community.

It took a long time for the character 紅 to rise to its current fame. On the left side, the“silk” radical, 纟, represents its meaning, as many once associated the color of red with dyed silk. The 工 (gōng) radical on the right indicates pronunciation. The modern dictionary may tell you 紅is the color of blood, but in ancient times the character referred to the color pink—a color created by weaving red and white silk threads together.

The words representing red in ancient times were赤(chì) and朱(zhū) and are still in use. A poem famously depicted the gap between the rich and the poor, “朱門酒肉臭，路有凍死骨。”(Zhūmén jiǔròu chòu, lù yǒu dòng sǐ gǔ.Inside the red doors flows the fragrance of wine and meat, while falling bodies of the starved dot the road.)

When red was mostly associated with revolution, to call someone “red” was a compliment to their great loyalty to the revolution. Today, “red tourism”, or 紅色旅游(hóngsè lǚyóu), themed tours of the Communist Party’s historic sites, is still very popular.

Traditionally, red is the color of wealth, celebration, and good fortune. When we are describing something flourishing, prosperous, or thriving, we use the word紅火(hónghuo). For instance, 生意紅火起來了(shēngyi hónghuo qǐlái le), or “business is booming”. Bonus or dividend is 紅利(hónglì), while 分紅(fēnhóng) means “to give bonuses or receive dividends”. 紅包 (hóngbāo), or red envelopes stuffed with money, are often given in private as a gift, tip, bonus, or, sometimes, as a bribe. In the term 紅白喜事(hóng bái xǐshì), or“red and white affairs”, the red affair refers to weddings and the white refers to funerals. People want開門紅(kāiménhóng) for the new year—literally “open door red”, which means a smooth and successful year from the beginning. The “red luck”, or 紅運 (hóngyùn), is the kind of good luck you want. If someone is lucky, you can say 走紅運 (zǒu hóngyùn). For example, 你真是走紅運，什么好事兒都讓你遇上了。(Nǐ zhēnshì zǒu hóngyùn, shénme hǎoshìr dōu ràng nǐ yù shàng le. You are so lucky; only good things seem to happen to you.)

If you are a little bit jealous of such luck, the word to use is 眼紅 (yǎnhóng), literally meaning“red-eyed”, the Chinese word for the greeneyed monster—just on the opposite side of the color spectrum.

走紅 (zǒuhóng)is short for 走紅運, which does not only mean to “have good luck”, but also means “popular”. For instance, 貓咪洗澡的視頻在網上很走紅。(Māomī xǐzǎo de shìpín zài wǎng shàng hěn zǒuhóng. Videos of cats taking a bath are very popular online.) Or他是目前最走紅的歌星。(Tā shì mùqián zuì zǒuhóng de gēxīng. He is the most popular singer right now.)

Popular people are naturally 紅人(hóngrén), literally “red people”. For example, 網絡紅人(wǎngluò hóngrén, “internet red people”), or“online celebrity”—often shortened to 網紅(“web red”). Red people can also mean those who are favored by power. For instance, 他是老板面前的紅人。(Tā shì lǎobǎn miànqián de hóngrén. He is the boss’s favorite.)

For those who are extremely popular, you can describe them as大紅大紫(dà hóng dà zǐ, literally “super red and purple”) or 紅得發紫(hóng de fā zǐ, literally “so red it starts to turn purple”). But remember an old saying,花無百日紅(huā wú bǎi rì hóng, “a flower, though beautiful, cannot retain its beauty for a hundred days.”) No fame lasts forever, and people love nothing more than a fall from grace. So, as you see all the auspicious red symbols of this new spring, perhaps spare a thought for the reds who don’t fare so well. - HUANG WElJlA (黃偉嘉) AND LlU JUE (劉玨)