Top ten Chinese words in 2011

No.1 微博打拐 microblogs combat child-trafficking

During 2011′s Spring Festival, one public event that attracted concern of Chinese netizens is “microblogs combat child-trafficking.” Many celebrities and netizens took and uploaded photos to help parents recognize their missing children. The campaign had attracted many followers and some abducted children have been identified and saved.

No.2 谣盐 salt rumor

In March, Due to radiation fears from the ongoing nuclear crisis in Japan, many Chinese citizens have rushed to buy salt under the belief that it will help fight the effects of radiation due to it’s iodine content. The panic buying not only left supermarkets void of salt, it has also driven up stock prices of companies in the salt industry.

No.3 地沟油 illegal cooking oil

The “illegal cooking oil” is usually made from discarded kitchen waste that has been refined, and  the oil, which contains a highly toxic and carcinogenic substance called “aflatoxin”, can cause cancer.

On Sept. 13, 2011 Chinese police arrested 32 suspects for producing and selling illegal cooking oil in a cross-province crackdown. More than 100 tonnes of such oil, made from leftovers dredged from gutters behind restaurants, were also seized after busting a criminal network spanning 14 provinces.

No.4 高铁 High-speed train/rail

In June 2011, Beijing-Shanghai high-speed railway started to operate, “safety, comfort and environmental protection,” “Top class construction quality in the world” offer us a good prospect.

On 23 July 2011, around 40 people died and 191 were injured in a train accident on a high-speed line raising doubts about China’s high speed system safety. Following the deadly crash, China plans to suspend new railway project approvals and launch safety checks on existing equipment.

No.5 校车安全 School bus safety

A primary school bus overturned and fell into a ditch Nov 16 afternoon in east China’s Jiangsu Province, which had 47 students on board. At least 15 students were killed and eight others injured.

Premier Wen Jiabao asked the Legal Affairs Office of the State Council on Nov. 27 to draft a statute on school bus safety. We still have a long way to go.

No.6 限 limit

Although the word “limit” is only one character in Chinese, it contains many things. We limit the amount of mortgages, the price of houses, control the traffic based on the last digit on a license plate, restrict broadcasting, entertainment on TV, …

The world “limit” is across the whole year.

No.7 控 control

Control, from the Japanese “コ ン (kon)”, taking complex (complex) of the head of the sound, saying something extreme like some people like.

In 2011, there is a hot word known by any net user – “control.” A series of “XX control” reflects that “control” has become a living state.  People add “control” after the things they like, such as Lolicon, uncle control, microblogging control, etc.

No.8 可入肺颗粒物 PM2.5

Few Chinese know what PM2.5 before the year 2011 and the government refused to disclose the index, which arouse controversy in the county. Recently the Chinese government has released a four-step schedule to monitor the PM2.5 pollution indicator in the next five years, the minister of environmental protection announced.

PM 2.5 refers to the fine airborne particles below 2.5 micrometers that are considered extremely hazardous to people’s health as they go deeper into the lungs than the larger particles that exist in the air.

No.9 伤不起 too delicate to bear a blow

Shang bu qi means “can’t afford to be injured.” Shang bu qi became a popular expression after it appeared in an online post early this year, and experts on the team that conducted the survey said the phrase encapsulated the people’s worries “despite material conditions having improved.”

It showed the “scars of society” as people became more “sensitive” to social injustice, government abuse, and fatal accidents.

No.10 Hold 住

Xie, a student at the Drama Department of Taiwan Culture University, achieved overnight fame after her appearance on August 9 on a Taiwan talk show. The program host asked her how she would handle the faux pas of arriving at a Qing Dynasty party dressed in a bikini. Miss Lin answered immediately that she would save the situation by making a headdress out of her bikini bra top and announcing, “Don’t be nervous. It’s under control. I can hold it.”

Since then “hold” has become a catch phrase among netizens, who are clamoring for more.