Wednesday, 3 February 2010

G words

G
G-string (sejenis cawat wanita berupa satu urat benang bagi menampung keseluruhan bahagian sulitnya; digunakan untuk tujuan memberahikan)
GRO - guest relations officer
Google (a search engine on the Internet)
grumpy
graucho
Grouch
go
gone
gonna (slang for going to)
give
gimme (give me)
gimme 5 (give me 5; melagakan tapak tangan serta jari sebagai tanda setuju, suka atau sokong)
gang
gangster
gangsterism
gonggok (ulat gonggok; maggots)
gerudi (drill)
menggerudi (to drill)
Garuda (sejenis burung)
gua caya lu - Chinese-Malay fusion for I believe in you or what you said

Gong Xi Fa Cai

Kong Hee Fatt Choy
Gong Xi Fa Cai (Mandarin; gong xi = congratulations)
Keong Hee Huat Chye (Hokkien)
Gung Hei Fat Choi (Cantonese)
Kung Hei Fat Choi (Hakka)
- congratulations and be prosperous

Kong Hee Fatt Choy - a new year greeting for the Chinese where each Chinese New Year is represented by an animal or symbol: 1958 = dog; 1959 = pig; 2009 = cow; 2010 = tiger. Many variations by dialects. The Chinese don’t say “Happy New Year” to each other. Instead, they say “congratulations” and that’s what “gong xi” essentially means. Yes, the ubiquitous new year greeting heard in diverse dialects, such as “Gong Xi Fa Cai” (Mandarin) or “Keong Hee Huat Chye” (Hokkien) or “Gung Hei Fat Choi” (Cantonese) or “Kung Hei Fat Choi” (Hakka) isn’t synonymous to “happy new year” in the western sense. They all mean one thing: “Congratulations and be prosperous”. (That's why McD serves Prosperity Burger only around the festive CNY season.).

The Spring Festival is also called “Nian” which today means only one thing – year. But the term “Nian” was once the name of a ferocious, savage, ugly, evil monster, like the dragon or unicorn that reportedly terrorised and preyed on human beings. Legend had it that this monster regularly came down from the mountain each first and 15th day of the lunar month to hunt people. Terrified people would lock themselves in for days. But one old wise man in the village realized “Nian” was bold only because the people were afraid.

Source: http://www.mohdshamsaiman.net/blog/2007/02/17/the-origins-and-meaning-of-gong-xi-fa-cai/

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