ABOUT THE SPEAKER
ShaoLan Hsueh - Technologist, entrepreneur
ShaoLan want to help people understand China's culture and language, and to bridge the gap between East and West.

Why you should listen

ShaoLan is an entrepreneur, angel investor, geek, writer, traveller and dreamer. She is the founder and creator of Chineasy, which she launched after her TED Talk in Long Beach, California in 2013.

In just over three years, she has built Chineasy into one of the most popular methods of learning Chinese across the Internet with several hundred thousand fellow learners. Her first book, Chineasy, The New Way to Read Chinese, was launched in March 2014 and has been translated into 18 languages. Her next book, Chineasy Everyday, was launched in March 2016.

ShaoLan is a tech entrepreneur with extensive business experience. At the age of 22, while studying for her MBA, she wrote four best-selling books on software in Taiwan, and her books were bundled by Microsoft. She co-founded pAsia, one of the major players on Internet in Asia in 1990’s. After a second masters degree at the University of Cambridge, she began Caravel Capital in 2005 to advise young tech companies.

Chineasy represents a return for ShaoLan to her artistic upbringing and in many ways a design project. This project is the culmination of her life’s journey through the East and West. Her aim is to help people to understand China, Chinese culture, its language and to bridge the gap between East and West. Her next step is to help Chinese children to enjoy and appreciate the beauty of their own language. 

 

More profile about the speaker
ShaoLan Hsueh | Speaker | TED.com
TED2016

ShaoLan: The Chinese zodiac, explained

薛晓兰: 中国十二生肖的详细介绍

Filmed:
2,804,498 views

世界上四分之一的人关注中国的生肖。技术专家和企业家薛晓兰说,就算你不相信生肖,也最好知道它是如何运作的。在这个有趣而内容丰富的演讲中,薛晓兰分享了一些有助于了解古代传统的技巧以及为什么生肖可以影响个人性格,职业,婚姻走向和接下来一年的运势。你的生肖有着什么涵义呢?
- Technologist, entrepreneur
ShaoLan want to help people understand China's culture and language, and to bridge the gap between East and West. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:12
Have you ever been asked
by your Chinese中文 friend朋友,
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你有没有被中国朋友问过
00:15
"What is your zodiac生肖 sign标志?"
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“你的生肖是什么?”
00:17
Don't think they are making制造 small talk.
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不要以为他们只是寒暄
00:20
If you say, "I'm a Monkey,"
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如果你说:“我属猴”
00:22
they immediately立即 know
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他们马上
00:23
you are either 24, 36, 48 or 60 years年份 old.
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就可以知道你多大年纪。
00:27
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
00:28
Asking a zodiac生肖 sign标志 is a polite有礼貌 way
of asking your age年龄.
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问生肖是问年龄的礼貌方式
00:32
By revealing揭示 your zodiac生肖 sign标志,
you are also being存在 evaluated评估.
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知道了你的生肖
还可以对你进行评估。
00:36
Judgments判决 are being存在 made制作
about your fortune幸运 or misfortune不幸,
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可以预测你幸运与否
00:40
your personality个性, career事业 prospects前途
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你的性格,职业前景
00:42
and how you will do in a given特定 year.
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接下来一年的运势走向。
00:45
If you share分享 you and your
partner's伙伴 animal动物 signs迹象,
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如果你分享了你和爱人的生肖
00:48
they will paint涂料 a picture图片 in their mind心神
about your private私人的 life.
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甚至可以想象你的私人生活。
00:52
Maybe you don't believe
in the Chinese中文 zodiac生肖.
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也许你不相信中国的生肖,
00:55
As a quarter25美分硬币 of the world世界 population人口
is influenced影响 by it,
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但是鉴于
全球四分之一的人受它的影响
00:59
you'd be wise明智的 to do something about that.
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你最好还是知道一些相关的知识。
01:02
So what is the Chinese中文 zodiac生肖, exactly究竟?
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到底什么是中国的生肖呢?
01:05
Most Westerners西方人 think
of Greco-Roman希腊罗马 zodiac生肖,
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大多数西方人听说过
希腊罗马12星座
01:09
the signs迹象 divided分为 into 12 months个月.
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这些星座把一年分成12个月。
01:11
The Chinese中文 zodiac生肖 is different不同.
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中国生肖不同。
01:13
It's a 12-year-年 cycle周期 labeled标记 with animals动物,
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中国生肖是以动物命名的
一个12年的循环
01:17
starting开始 with a Rat and ending结尾 with a Pig,
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以鼠开始,以猪结尾。
01:19
and has no association协会
with constellations星座.
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它们与星座没有任何联系。
01:23
For example, if you were born天生
in 1975, you are a Rabbit兔子.
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比如你出生在1975年,
你就属兔。
01:29
Can you see your zodiac生肖 sign标志 there?
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大家可以看到自己的生肖么?
01:32
Our Chinese中文 ancestors祖先 constructed
a very complicated复杂 theoretical理论 framework骨架
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中国的老祖先以阴阳,
五行和12生肖为基础
01:37
based基于 on yin and yang, the five elements分子
and the 12 zodiac生肖 animals动物.
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建立了一套非常复杂的理论框架。
01:42
Over thousands数千 of years年份,
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千百年来
01:44
this popular流行 culture文化 has affected受影响
people's人们 major重大的 decisions决定,
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这种流行文化
影响着人们的大部分决定
01:48
such这样 as naming命名, marriage婚姻, giving birth分娩
and attitude态度 towards each other.
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比如起名,婚介,生产
甚至对彼此的态度。
01:54
And some of the implications启示
are quite相当 amazing惊人.
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其中一些涵义令人称奇。
01:58
The Chinese中文 believe certain某些 animals动物
get on better than the others其他.
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中国人相信某些生肖与
其它生肖比较好相处。
02:03
So parents父母 choose选择 specific具体 years年份
to give birth分娩 to babies婴儿,
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所以夫妇选择特定的年份生孩子
02:07
because they believe the team球队 effort功夫
by the right combination组合 of animals动物
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因为他们相信特定的生肖组合
02:12
can give prosperity繁荣 to families家庭.
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会让家族更加繁荣
02:15
We even refer参考 to the zodiac生肖
when entering进入 into romantic浪漫 relations关系.
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甚至谈恋爱的时候也会参考生肖。
02:20
I'm a Pig; I should have perfect完善 romance浪漫
with Tigers老虎, Goats山羊 and Rabbits.
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我属猪,我最好的恋爱对象是
属虎,羊和兔的人。
02:27
Chinese中文 people believe some animals动物
are natural自然 enemies敌人.
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中国人相信有些生肖天生相克。
02:31
As a Pig, I need
to be careful小心 with a Snake.
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对于属猪的人来说
我要小心属蛇的人。
02:35
Raise提高 your hand if you are a Snake.
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各位属蛇的人请举手。
02:37
Let's have a chat later后来.
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我一会有话跟你们说。
02:39
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
02:40
We believe some animals动物
are luckier幸运 than the others其他,
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我们相信有些生肖更加好运
02:43
such这样 as the Dragon.
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比如生肖龙。
02:45
Unlike不像 the Western西 tradition传统,
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不同于西方传统
02:47
the Chinese中文 Dragon is a symbol符号
for power功率, strength强度 and wealth财富.
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中国龙是权力,力量和财富的象征。
02:52
It's everyone's大家的 dream梦想
to have a Dragon baby宝宝.
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每个人都希望有一个龙宝宝。
02:55
Jack插口 Ma's马云的 parents父母
must必须 have been very proud骄傲.
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马云的父母就非常自豪。
02:58
And they are not the only ones那些.
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这种现象非常普遍。
03:00
In 2012, the Year of the Dragon,
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2012年是龙年,
03:03
the birthrate出生率 in China中国,
Hong香港 Kong and Taiwan台湾
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中国香港和台湾的婴儿出生率
03:05
increased增加 by five percent百分.
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提高了5%。
03:07
That means手段 another另一个
one million百万 more babies婴儿.
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比正常多出了一百万新生儿。
03:12
With a traditional传统
preference偏爱 to baby宝宝 boys男孩,
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加之生男孩的倾向明显,
03:15
the boy-girl男孩女孩 ratio that year
was 120 to 100.
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那年的男女比例为120:100。
03:20
When those Dragon boys男孩 grow增长 up,
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当属龙的男孩长大,
03:22
they will face面对 much more severe严重
competition竞争 in love and job工作 markets市场.
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他们会面临更加激烈的
婚姻和职场挑战。
03:27
According根据 to the BBCBBC and the Chinese中文
government's政府的 press release发布,
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根据BBC和中国政府的官方消息
03:31
January一月 2015 saw a peak
of Cesarean剖腹产 sections部分.
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2015年1月迎来了剖腹产的高潮
03:36
Why?
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为什么?
03:38
That was the last month
for the Year of the Horse.
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因为这是马年的最后一个月。
03:42
It's not because they like horses马匹 so much,
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并不是大家喜欢生肖马
03:44
it's because they try to avoid避免
having unlucky不幸的 Goat山羊 babies婴儿.
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而是大家尽量避免
不祥的属羊的孩子。
03:48
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
03:49
If you are a Goat山羊, please don't feel bad.
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如果你属羊,也不要伤心
03:52
Those are Goat山羊 babies婴儿.
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这些都是属羊的人。
03:53
They don't look like losers失败者 to me.
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我可不觉得他们是失败者。
03:56
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
03:57
Tiger is another另一个 undesirable不可取 animal动物,
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还有一个不受欢迎的生肖是虎
04:00
due应有 to its volatile挥发物 temperament气质.
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也许和它的喜怒无常有关。
04:02
Many许多 Chinese中文 regions地区
saw a sharp尖锐 decline下降 of birthrate出生率
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在不受欢迎生肖的年份
中国很多地区的婴儿出生率
04:06
during those years年份.
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都有明显下降。
04:08
Perhaps也许 one should consider考虑
zodiac生肖 in reverse相反,
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也许对于生肖我们应该逆向思维
04:11
as those Tiger and Goat山羊 babies婴儿
will face面对 much less competition竞争.
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因为虎宝宝和羊宝宝
将会面临最少的竞争
04:16
Maybe they are the lucky幸运 ones那些.
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也许他们才是最幸运的。
04:20
I went through通过 the Forbes福布斯
top最佳 300 richest首富 people in the world世界,
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我调查了世界福布斯财富榜
前300位的生肖
04:24
and it's interesting有趣 to see
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有趣的是
04:26
the most undesirable不可取 two animals动物,
the Goat山羊 and Tiger,
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属最不受欢迎的羊和虎的人数
04:30
are at the top最佳 of the chart图表,
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反而排在前两位
04:32
even higher更高 than the Dragon.
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甚至高于龙。
04:34
So maybe we should consider考虑,
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也许我们应该考虑
04:36
maybe it's much better
to have less competition竞争.
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减轻竞争压力才是更好的选择。
04:40
One last but interesting有趣 point:
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最后一个有趣的事情是
04:42
many许多 Chinese中文 people make
their investment投资 decisions决定
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很多中国人依据生肖图作为索引
04:45
based基于 on the zodiac生肖 sign标志 index指数.
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进行投资。
04:48
Although虽然 the belief信仰 and tradition传统
of the zodiac生肖 sign标志
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尽管生肖的信仰和传统
04:52
has been over thousands数千 of years年份,
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由来已久,
04:55
the trend趋势 of using运用 it
in making制造 major重大的 decisions决定
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使用生肖作重大决定的风潮
04:58
did not really happen发生
until直到 the past过去 few少数 decades几十年.
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近几十年才开始出现。
05:01
Our ancestors祖先 were very busy
surviving幸存 poverty贫穷, drought干旱,
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我们的祖先忙于战胜贫穷,干旱
05:06
famine饥荒, riot暴动, disease疾病 and civil国内 war战争.
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饥荒,动乱,疾病甚至国内战争。
05:10
And finally最后, Chinese中文 people
have the time, wealth财富 and technology技术
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终于中国人有时间,有财富和科技
05:15
to create创建 an ideal理想 life
they've他们已经 always wanted.
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可以过上他们梦想中的生活。
05:19
The collective集体 decision决定
made制作 by 1.3 billion十亿 people
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13亿人做出的集体决定
05:23
has caused造成 the fluctuation波动 in economics经济学
and demand需求 on everything,
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足以在经济上掀起巨大的波澜
足以改变很多事情的走向
05:27
from health健康 care关心 and education教育
to property属性 and consumer消费者 goods产品.
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无论是医疗还是教育领域
无论是财产还是消费品方面。
05:33
As China中国 plays播放 such这样 an important重要 role角色
in the global全球 economy经济 and geopolitics地缘政治,
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随着中国在全球经济和地域政治中
扮演越来越重要的角色,
05:38
the decisions决定 made制作 based基于 on the zodiac生肖
and other Chinese中文 traditions传统
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基于生肖
和其他中国传统而作出的决定
05:42
end结束 up impacting影响 everyone大家
around the world世界.
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将会最终影响世界上的每一个人。
05:47
Are there any Monkeys猴子 here?
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在座的有属猴的吗?
05:50
2016 is the Year of the Monkey.
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2016年是猴年
05:53
Monkeys猴子 are clever聪明, curious好奇,
creative创作的 and mischievous恶作剧.
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猴意味着聪明,好奇
创造力和顽皮。
05:58
Thank you.
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谢谢。
06:00
(Applause掌声)
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(掌声)
Translated by Gu Yu
Reviewed by Yi-Fan Yu

▲Back to top

ABOUT THE SPEAKER
ShaoLan Hsueh - Technologist, entrepreneur
ShaoLan want to help people understand China's culture and language, and to bridge the gap between East and West.

Why you should listen

ShaoLan is an entrepreneur, angel investor, geek, writer, traveller and dreamer. She is the founder and creator of Chineasy, which she launched after her TED Talk in Long Beach, California in 2013.

In just over three years, she has built Chineasy into one of the most popular methods of learning Chinese across the Internet with several hundred thousand fellow learners. Her first book, Chineasy, The New Way to Read Chinese, was launched in March 2014 and has been translated into 18 languages. Her next book, Chineasy Everyday, was launched in March 2016.

ShaoLan is a tech entrepreneur with extensive business experience. At the age of 22, while studying for her MBA, she wrote four best-selling books on software in Taiwan, and her books were bundled by Microsoft. She co-founded pAsia, one of the major players on Internet in Asia in 1990’s. After a second masters degree at the University of Cambridge, she began Caravel Capital in 2005 to advise young tech companies.

Chineasy represents a return for ShaoLan to her artistic upbringing and in many ways a design project. This project is the culmination of her life’s journey through the East and West. Her aim is to help people to understand China, Chinese culture, its language and to bridge the gap between East and West. Her next step is to help Chinese children to enjoy and appreciate the beauty of their own language. 

 

More profile about the speaker
ShaoLan Hsueh | Speaker | TED.com