Frustration from Translation

At times, researching Chinese culture and history can be confusing and frustrating because of inconsistencies in translation. For instance, when trying to learn about the concept of life energy, one might see the word “qi” (pronounced “chee”) used in a certain document. In another document the word “chi” might be used (not the Greek letter). If you are not accustomed to this phenomenon, you might get disoriented. “Chi” and “qi” are translations, or Romanizations, of the same Chinese word that means “life energy” or “breath” and are spoken in the same way. Same meaning and sound, but different ways to spell.

There are multiple systems of romanization, and each system will give different spellings for the same Chinese word or character. The Wade-Giles system is arguably the most recognizable one in America. It was the most popular system during the twentieth century and is still in use today. Whenever you read “Tai Chi,” you are witnessing the influence of the Wade-Giles version of romanization. The international standard version right now is the Hanyu Pinyin system, commonly called Pinyin. In Pinyin, “Tai Chi” is spelled “Taiji.” Both spellings refer to the martial art that is becoming a popular method of both exercise and relaxation in the West.

As a general rule, this blog will use the Hanyu Pinyin system, but fancy marks around letters will be omitted for the sake of simplicity. For example, "八卦” means “eight symbols.” English texts from the last century might often translate this as “pakua” (Wade-Giles), but the modern standard (Pinyin) would be spelled “bāguà.” On this blog, the word will be spelled “bagua.” Below is a table to help clarify the concept of romanization.

Chinese	氣	八卦	太極	拳	功夫
Meaning	Life energy	Eight symbols	Supreme ultimate	Fist or boxing	Martial art or hard-earned skill
Hanyu Pinyin	Qi	Bagua	Taiji	Quan	Gongfu
Wade-Giles	Ch'i	Pakua	T'ai Chi	Ch'uan	kung-fu
Yale	Chi	Bagwa	Tai Chi	Chwan	gung-fu