Chinese Tuesdays: New Year's Eve (of revolution)

Here's an amusing titbit in advance of the Chinese new year that I hope doesn't get the Anthill blocked.

There's been some vexation that this year, the eve of the spring festival (January 30th) is a working day, not a holiday. So a creative homophone has been doing the rounds. That night, new year's eve, is called 除夕 (chúxī – where 夕 xī means "eve"). But with a small substitution you get 除习 (chúxí), which sounds like a shortened version of "除掉 (chúdiào – eliminate) 习近平 (Xi Jinping)" – get rid of Xi. That, the suggestion goes, is why the government isn't keen to celebrate the occasion.

It's tongue-in-cheek, but alludes to a real historical parallel. The 15th and last day of the spring festival is called 元宵 (yuánxiāo – literally "first evening", being the first full moon of the new year). Yuan Shikai, autocrat of the early Republic from 1912 to 1916, didn't like that name because it sounds the same as 袁消 (yuánxiāo) – a contraction of "消除 (xiāochú – get rid of) 袁世凯 (Yuan Shikai). So he changed the name of the festival and the boiled glutinous rice balls traditionally eaten on it to 汤圆 (tāngyuán), which is still used in southern China.

The Anthill wishes everyone a happy Chinese new year (新春快乐 xīnchūnkuàilè). But whether you're enjoying the TV gala on chuxi, or eating a glutinous rice ball on yuanxiao, please harbour no ill will towards China's rulers past or present.