Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Glossary
Arhat
Buddhist saint
Bei
North
Concession
A section of Shanghai under
the control of a foreign power during the
nineteenth and twentieth centuries; a
colonial territory in all but name.
Cultural Revolution
Ten-year period
beginning in 1966 and characterized by
destruction, persecution and fanatical
devotion to Mao.
CCP
Chinese Communist Party
Ding
An ancient three-legged vessel, used for
cooking and ceremonial purposes.
Dingpeng
Literally a nail shed, thecheapest
kind of brothel in concession-era
Shanghai.
Dougong
Ornate, load-bearing bracket used
in temple roofs
Dagoba
Another name for a stupa
Dong
East
Fen
Smallest denomination of Chinese
currency - there are one hundred fen to
the yuan.
Feng
Peak
Feng shui
A system of geomancy used to
determine the positioning of buildings.
Gong
Palace
Guan
Temple
Guanyin
The ubiquitous Buddhist Goddess
of Mercy,who postponed herentry into
paradise in order to help ease human
misery. Derived from the Indian deity
Avalokiteshvara, she is often depicted with
up to a thousand arms.
Guomindang (GMD)
The Nationalist Peoples'
Party. Under Chiang Kaishek, the GMD
fought Communist forces for 25 years
before being defeated and moving to
Taiwan in 1949, where it remains a major
political party.
Han Chinese
The main body of the Chinese
people, as distinct from other ethnic groups
such as Uigur, Miao, Hui or Tibetan.
Hu
Lake
Jiao
(or mao) Ten fen
Jie
Street
Little Red Book
A selection of “Quotations
from Chairman Mao Zedong”, produced in
1966 as a philosophical treatise for Red
Guards during the Cultural Revolution.
Longtang
A narrow lane lined with shikumen
houses
Lu
Street
Maitreya Buddha
The Buddha of the future,
at present awaiting rebirth.
Men
Gate/door
Miao
Temple
Ming
Chinese dynasty that ruled from 1368
to 1644, before being overthrown by the
Manchus from the north.
Nan
South
PLA
The People's Liberation Army, the official
name of the Communist military forces
since 1949.
PSB
Public Security Bureau, the branch of
China's police force which deals directly
with foreigners.
Pagoda
To wer with distinctively tapering
structure.
Pipa
A traditional string instrument
Pinyin
The official system of transliterating
Chinese script into Roman characters.
Putonghua
Mandarin Chinese; literally
“Common Language”.
Qiao
Bridge
Qipao
The characteristic Chinese long fitted
dress.
Qing
The last of the great Chinese dynasties
(1644-1911), administered from Beijing.
Red Guards
The unruly factional forces
unleashed by Mao during the Cultural
Revolution to find and destroy brutally any
“reactionaries” among the populace.
Renmin
The people
Shan
Mountain
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