Chinese translation of crisis
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It is an urban myth or false etymology that the Chinese word "weiji" (危機) means "danger" plus "opportunity". Such an interpretation has gained great popularity in universities, among business consultants, and in the popular press. It is used to communicate the inspirational notion that a crisis should be a time for optimism, by interpreting the character 機 "ji" as meaning "opportunity".
While the word jihui (機會) does mean "opportunity" in modern Chinese, the character 機 "ji" itself has many meanings, of which "opportunity" is only one. In the word "weiji" (危機), the character has the meaning "crucial point", not "opportunity".
Some attribute such an interpretation to John F. Kennedy, when he delivered an Indianapolis speech on April 12 1959: [1],[2]
- When written in Chinese the word crisis is composed of two characters.
- One represents danger,
- and the other represents opportunity.
[edit] Popular culture
The idea was mentioned in the Fear of Flying episode of The Simpsons. [3]
[edit] References
- ^ bartleby.com
- ^ conservativeforum.org
- ^ April 26th, 2006 edition of The A.V. Club
[edit] External links
- Crisis" Does NOT Equal "Danger" Plus "Opportunity": How a misunderstanding about Chinese characters has led many astray by Victor H. Mair, Professor of Chinese Language and Literature, Department of East Asian Languages and Civilizations, University of Pennsylvania
