Homosexuality in China - Terminology in China

Terminology in China

See also: Tongzhi

Traditional terms for homosexuality included "the passion of the cut sleeve" (断袖之癖, Mandarin, Pinyin: duànxiù zhī pǐ), and "the bitten peach" (分桃 Pinyin: fēntáo). An example of the latter term appears in a 6th century poem by Liu Xiaozhuo:

— She dawdles, not daring to move closer,/ Afraid he might compare her with leftover peach.

Other, less literary, terms have included "male trend" (男風 Pinyin: nánfēng), "allied brothers" (香火兄弟 Pinyin: xiānghuǒ xiōngdì), and "the passion of Longyang" (龍陽癖 Pinyin: lóngyángpǐ), referencing a homoerotic anecdote about Lord Long Yang in the Warring States Period. The formal modern word for "homosexuality/homosexual(s)" is tongxinglian (同性戀, Pinyin: tóngxìngliàn, literally same-sex relations/love) or tongxinglian zhe (同性戀者, Pinyin: tóngxìngliàn zhě, homosexual people). Instead of that formal word, "tongzhi" (同志 Pinyin: tóngzhì), simply a head rhyme word, is more commonly used in the gay community. Tongzhi (literally, 'comrade'; sometimes along with nü tongzhi, literally "female comrade", 女同志 Pinyin: nǚ tóngzhì), which was first adopted by Hong Kong researchers in Gender Studies, is used as slang in Mandarin Chinese to refer to homosexuals. Such usage is seen in Taiwan. However, in Mainland China, tongzhi is used both in the context of the traditional "comrade" sense (e.g., used in speeches by Communist Party officials) and to refer to homosexuals. In Cantonese, gei1 (基), adopted from English gay, is used. "Gay" is sometimes considered to be offensive when used by heterosexuals or even by homosexuals in certain situations. Another slang term is boli (玻璃, Pinyin: bōli, crystal or glass), which is not so commonly used. Among gay university students, the acronym "datong" (大同, Pinyin: dàtóng, literally "great togetherness"), which also refers to utopia, in Chinese is becoming popular. Datong is short for daxuesheng tongzhi (university students homosexuals).

Lesbians usually call themselves lazi (拉子, Pinyin: lāzi) or lala (拉拉, Pinyin: lālā). These two terms are abbreviations of the transliteration of the English term "lesbian". These slang terms are also commonly used in Mainland China now.