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Chinese Palindromes

Palindromes are phrases that can be read from left to right or right to left, such as: "Never odd or even". Most English palindromes usually require some flexibility on the part of the reader because, while the correct sequence of characters is there, the spacing may not be. A different type of palindrome, called a word-unit palindrome, does not require the reader to reverse the letters of each word, treating each word as unit instead. An example is "Fall leaves after leaves fall". Because of the nature of Chinese characters, all Chinese palindromes are word-unit palindromes.

Non-mirror Image Palindromes

Although English palindromes are usually defined as reading the same in either direction, many Chinese palindromes can be read with different meaning in each direction. This fact, combined with the fact that Chinese characters are often written to be read from left to right, right to left, and top to bottom, has given rise to several works of fiction where a note written in one direction is read in the opposite direction with unintended tragic or comical consequences.

Chinese Translations
我愛媽媽 L to R: I love Momma.
R to L: Momma Loves me.
人人為我 L to R: Everybody cares about me.
R to L: I care about everybody.
人過大佛寺 L to R: A man walks past Big Buddha Temple.
R to L: The temple's Buddha is bigger than a man.
客上天然居 L to R: Guest goes to Tien Ran Ju.
R to L: It's a guest from Heaven.
郎中王若儷 L to R: King of youth looks like a lady.
R to L: The lady looks like Wang Zhong Lang.
地福多出賢
 L to R: Lucky places produce many worthy people.
R to L: Worthy people come from a very lucky place.
僧遊雲隱寺
 L to R: Monk travels to Cloud Hiding Temple.
R to L: The temple hides the clouds and traveling monks.
人中柳如是 L to R: Man is like being among willow trees.
R to L: It's like a man among willow trees.
雨滋春樹碧連天
 L to R: Rain nurtures the spring trees and makes them so green and tall they conect to the sky.
R to L: The sky connects with the green trees and the spring nurtures the rain.
風送花香紅滿地
 L to R: The wind spreads the flower fragrance and red petals all over the ground.
R to L: The ground is covered in red and fragant flowers say farewll to the wind.
艷艷紅花隨落雨
 L to R: Bright red flowers fall with the rain.
R to L: Rain falls with the flowers and becomes red.
水水山山處處明明秀秀
 L to R: Water after water, mountain after mountain, it's pretty everywhere.
R to L: It's pretty because every place has mountains and waters.
晴晴雨雨時時好好奇奇
 L to R: Sometimes it's sunny. Sometimes it's rain. It's good and strange.
R to L: It's strange and good that sometimes it rains and sometimes it's sunny.
春回先富村
L to R: Spring returns to Xiafu village.
R to L: The village is famous and returns to spring first.
霧窗寒對遙天暮 L to R: The window in the fog is coldly facing the distant sunset
R to L: The sunset sky distantly facing the cold window in the fog.

See also

Continue to Mirror Image Palindromes.
  ©2003-2008 J. Lau. All rights reserved.