Once I was taken Chinese online lessons, my classmates asked me a question that “ how to translate the old saying “民以食为天 (mín yǐ shí wéitiān)’’? As a matter of fact, I even didn’t hear of it before, not even its meanings. Then I post this question elementary Chinese website and soon the question has been replied.
The answer are as follows：
This idiom should be “民以食为天(mín yǐ shí wéitiān) " and it comes from 《汉书·郦食其传》“王者以民为天，而民以食为天。《hànshū·lì yī jī chuán》"wánɡzhěyǐmínwéitiān，érmínyǐshíwéitiān” (biography of 郦食其 in the historical record of 汉 dynasty). That sentence means "People are the most important to an emperor, while foods are the most important to the people". Note that the correct pronunciation of the name is: lì yī jī
The context when 郦(lì)spoke this was during the war time of 楚汉争霸(chǔhànzhēnɡbà), when he persuaded 刘邦(liúbānɡ)to occupy a city in which a lot of foods were stored. He spoke that to emphasize the importance of the foods(especially in the war time, if you don't have enough food supply, the soldiers won't fight for you, or even they would fight against you!)
Today, we usually use this proverb as an introduction sentence, when talking on the topic of foods. You would probably hear a sentence like this one from the host on the TV:
It is popularly said that "foods are the most important to people". Now, please let me introduce you some restaurants famous for their featured dishes.
This saying points out the respect that Chinese people have in their culture for food and its importance to the Chinese people.
Even in recent history, only two generations ago, many people died from hunger and this has had an effect on modern culture. Phrases such as "吃了吗(chīlemɑ)" as a greeting also point to this.
This is apparent in many aspects of the culture; inviting others out to eat 请客(qǐnɡkè), bringing out snacks and food as soon as a guest arrives, the complexity of preparation in Chinese cuisine and giving of health food gifts to others.
Now you can understand the real meaning of 民以食为天(mín yǐ shí wéitiān) in Chinese. So next time, if your online Chinese tutor ask you to introduce a kind of food in China, you can begin with the old Chinese saying that “民以食为天(mín yǐ shí wéitiān)”. I believe your teacher will proud of you talent in language.http://blog.sina.com.cn/s/blog_c24c50aa0101hkwd.html
The answer are as follows：
This idiom should be “民以食为天(mín yǐ shí wéitiān) " and it comes from 《汉书·郦食其传》“王者以民为天，而民以食为天。《hànshū·lì yī jī chuán》"wánɡzhěyǐmínwéitiān，érmínyǐshíwéitiān” (biography of 郦食其 in the historical record of 汉 dynasty). That sentence means "People are the most important to an emperor, while foods are the most important to the people". Note that the correct pronunciation of the name is: lì yī jī
The context when 郦(lì)spoke this was during the war time of 楚汉争霸(chǔhànzhēnɡbà), when he persuaded 刘邦(liúbānɡ)to occupy a city in which a lot of foods were stored. He spoke that to emphasize the importance of the foods(especially in the war time, if you don't have enough food supply, the soldiers won't fight for you, or even they would fight against you!)
Today, we usually use this proverb as an introduction sentence, when talking on the topic of foods. You would probably hear a sentence like this one from the host on the TV:
It is popularly said that "foods are the most important to people". Now, please let me introduce you some restaurants famous for their featured dishes.
This saying points out the respect that Chinese people have in their culture for food and its importance to the Chinese people.
Even in recent history, only two generations ago, many people died from hunger and this has had an effect on modern culture. Phrases such as "吃了吗(chīlemɑ)" as a greeting also point to this.
This is apparent in many aspects of the culture; inviting others out to eat 请客(qǐnɡkè), bringing out snacks and food as soon as a guest arrives, the complexity of preparation in Chinese cuisine and giving of health food gifts to others.
Now you can understand the real meaning of 民以食为天(mín yǐ shí wéitiān) in Chinese. So next time, if your online Chinese tutor ask you to introduce a kind of food in China, you can begin with the old Chinese saying that “民以食为天(mín yǐ shí wéitiān)”. I believe your teacher will proud of you talent in language.http://blog.sina.com.cn/s/blog_c24c50aa0101hkwd.html
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