Author Archives: Free Guan

The Curse Word Rhyme

Nationality: China
Age: "No no no, don't tell them my age"
Occupation: Elementary School Teacher
Residence: Shenyang, Liaoning, China
Performance Date: 2/24/2021
Primary Language: Chinese



Backgrounds:

Ms. Z is an elementary school Maths and Chinese teacher in Shenyang, China. We were having dinner together when I mentioned my folklore collection project. She then shared some of the interesting folklores she’s learned of from the kids in her class or from her colleagues.


The Main Piece:

Z: After the graduation of some of the kids in one of my classes, they came back to visit me and told me about one of the rhymes they’ve made in elementary school, which is used to curse others.

It goes as follows:

orignial text: 操你妈，操你爸，操你全家嘎啦哈，操你奶奶高血压，操你爷爷被车轧

Phonetic script: cao ni ma, cao ni ba, cao ni quan jia galaha, cao ni nai nai gao xue ya, cao ni ye ye bei che ya

Word to Word translation: fuck your mother, fuck your father, fuck your whole family galaha (this is the name of a traditional folk toy in Northeast China made of the leg bones of pigs. But it is used here maily to keep the rhyme and rythm, with to specific meaning), fuck your grandma, high blood pressure, fuck your grandpa, run over by a car

A more artistic translation that keeps the flow and the rhyme: Fuck your mom. Fuck your Pa. Fuck your whole family from the bottom up. Fuck you grandma with an attack in the heart. Fuck your grandpa, he got hit by a car.

Z: I knew that they had such a dirty rhyme, but I didn’t know it was as offensive as this one! I’ve gotten angry with this when they were in school. But thinking about it now, they were quite creative.

 

Analysis:

Although these are not the most offensive things I can imagine, they are quite offensive for elementary school kids. This dirty little rhyme perfectly shows how creative, and cruel and mean, kids can be. Using this rhyme to curse others makes cursing a fun thing to do, and it even stimulates innovations in cursing, because kids might want to come up with more humorous and offensive ways to curse others. 

Also, 操你妈， or “fuck your mom” is the most commonly used curse word in China. Its presence in such rhyme shows that by the age for elementary school, most kids have already been exposed to curse words, either from the outside world or from their family. I remember when I was in elementary school, I was super excited to use curse words or learn about new curse words. This rhyme can also show the strong interest of young children, especially elementary school kids, in curse words

 

The Lucky Coin in New Year Dumplings

Nationality: China
Age: 72
Occupation: Painter
Residence: Shenyang, Liaoning, China
Performance Date: 4/18/2021
Primary Language: Chinese



Backgrounds:

YZ was born in the family of a high ranking military official of the Republic of China. After the Communist Party defeated the Nationalist Party, her family did not flee to Taiwan. Instead, they settled in a village in the northeastern part of China and became farmers. During the Cultural Revolution, her father was executed, and her mother married another man, also a farmer. YZ grew up and had a family in the village, and spent a large amount of time in her life as a farmer, until her grandson was born. Her son had a job and created a family in the city, and when her grandson was born, she moved into the city to help take care fo the kid.

YZ couldn’t recall how exactly did she learn of this piece of folklore. She says many other people she know are doing similar things.

The informant shared this piece of folklore during a family dinner on Sunday.



The Main Piece:

In YZ’s family, they will put a “lucky coin” randomly in one of the dumplings they make on Chinese New Year. And whoever eats the dumpling with the coin in it is considered to going to be super lucky in the coming year.

Analysis:

The context here is Chinese New Year, and the whole family gathers together making dumplings. The performance is putting one coin in one of the dumplings, and whoever eats that dumpling is going to be super happy for that good luck. The context and performance together form a special New-Year spirit, meaning that this folklore only works on Chinese New Year. In any other occasion, if you find a coin in your dumpling, you feel like the cook was making a mistake, and your food gets polluted by something that shouldn’t be there. If there’s only the context but no performance, meaning we’re simply making dumplings for Chinese New Year without the lucky coin, it gets boring.

The Big White Ghost

Nationality: China
Age: 72
Occupation: Painter
Residence: Shenyang, Liaoning, China
Performance Date: 4/18/2021
Primary Language: Chinese



Backgrounds:

YZ was born in the family of a high ranking military official of the Republic of China. After the Communist Party defeated the Nationalist Party, her family did not flee to Taiwan. Instead, they settled in a village in the northeastern part of China and became farmers. During the Cultural Revolution, her father was executed, and her mother married another man, also a farmer. YZ grew up and had a family in the village, and spent a large amount of time in her life as a farmer, until her grandson was born. Her son had a job and created a family in the city, and when her grandson was born, she moved into the city to help take care fo the kid.

YZ learned of this piece of folklore from the stories told by other villagers when she was growing up. She also claims that she has seen the Big White Ghost herself.

The informant shared this piece of folklore during a family dinner on Sunday when the family was chatting about ghosts.

The Main Piece:

YZ: You know the Big White Ghost? I’ve told you when you were young.

The Grandson: Is it the big white shadow that walks around at night?

YZ: Yes. Sometimes at night, there’s a white shadow walking around the village. He’s very tall and very big. It’s like several people died together, and they merged into one ghost.

YZ’s daughter-in-law: Is it real?

YZ: Of course it’s real, there was one time that thing walked into my sister’s lawn. 

Analysis:

I think that this piece of folklore reveals the people’s fear for death and people’s understanding of the process of beocming a ghost. The presence of the “Big White Ghost” might be a fact, but the idea that the “Big White Ghost” comes from a lot of people dying together is an analysis given by the villagers. I think it reveals that the villagers believe the souls of different people can merge into one single ghost.

The Ghost on the Millstone

Nationality: China
Age: 72
Occupation: Painter
Residence: Shenyang, Liaoning, China
Performance Date: 4/18/2021
Primary Language: Chinese

Backgrounds:

YZ was born in the family of a high ranking military official of the Republic of China. After the Communist Party defeated the Nationalist Party, her family did not flee to Taiwan. Instead, they settled in a village in the northeastern part of China and became farmers. During the Cultural Revolution, her father was executed, and her mother married another man, also a farmer. YZ grew up and had a family in the village, and spent a large amount of time in her life as a farmer, until her grandson was born. Her son had a job and created a family in the city, and when her grandson was born, she moved into the city to help take care fo the kid.

YZ learned of this piece of folklore from the stories told by other villagers when she was growing up.

The informant shared this piece of folklore during a family dinner on Sunday when the family was chatting about ghosts.

The Main Piece:

YZ: Near “红带沟（Red Band Rift)” (the village where YZ grew up), there is a big millstone. Sometimes at night, you can see a white little creature running around the millstone, that is a small white ghost. You may not go near it, because if you get close to it, it will jump onto you body and tickles you to death.

The Grandson: Is it still there today?

YZ: No, it’s gone. I heard this story from other older villagers. They say that the small white ghost has disappeared after the war (Japanese Invasion and Chinese Civil War), probably the guns and bombs have scared it away.

Analysis:

This is a legend that is told among the villagers in Hongdaigou. According to YZ, this is either just a fact that happens, or just a story that is told among the people. I personally believe that, if it is a story that is made up, its purpose if to scare children so that they wouldn’t run around at they, when they’re supposed to go to bed.

This story also reveals the general belief of the villagers that destructions like wars and weapons, big noises, guns and bombs, as well as fires, may scare off ghosts.

The Drought Tomb

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Nationality: China
Age: 72
Occupation: Painter
Residence: Shenyang, Liaoning, China
Performance Date: 4/18/2021
Primary Language: Chinese

Backgrounds:

YZ was born in the family of a high ranking military official of the Republic of China. After the Communist Party defeated the Nationalist Party, her family did not flee to Taiwan. Instead, they settled in a village in the northeastern part of China and became farmers. During the Cultural Revolution, her father was executed, and her mother married another man, also a farmer. YZ grew up and had a family in the village, and spent a large amount of time in her life as a farmer, until her grandson was born. Her son had a job and created a family in the city, and when her grandson was born, she moved into the city to help take care fo the kid.

YZ learned of this piece of folklore from the stories told by other villagers when she was growing up.

The informant shared this piece of folklore during a family dinner on Sunday when the family was chatting about ghosts.

The Main Piece

If a woman dies and is buried when she is pregnant, it might happen that the kid in her womb will live although the mother is dead. The kid will climb out of the mother’s death body and stays inside of the tomb. If this happens around a village, the village will experience drought for years. The tomb is called a 旱包（drought tomb).

Analysis:

I think this piece of folklore reflects how the villagers understand natural disasters. They consider drought to be a result of a ghost-ish baby haunting the village.

This can also be linked to the concepts of life cycle: When a woman dies in a pregnancy, the “fruit” of her pregnancy, the baby, dies with her and, therefore, doesn’t come. This piece of folklore reverses this situation, so that the fruit of the pregnancy will come although the mother is dead. However, the absence of the “fruit” will occur in a difference realm– the actual fruits of the village will not come because of the drought. The drough will cause plants to die and therefore the fruits, what the farmers live on, will experience great loss.