For the outsider, Taiwan may seem like the world’s most apologetic country, obsessed with saying buhaoyisi (a term similar to “excuse me”), according to a BBC report titled “The island that never stops apologizing” last week. In fact, the article said, “the culture of buhaoyisi reveals a lot about the island’s hidden layers of modesty and shyness,” and the term serves as a catch-all phrase that can be deployed in almost all kinds of situations.
Although the term is made up of four characters that literally translate to “bad meaning” or “bad feeling,” simply saying buhaoyisi “can open a Pandora’s box of profuse politeness,” while the Western notion of “excuse me” is far too limited to express all the social graces and good manners of this popular expression in Taiwan.
Moral teachings of Confucianism and decades of Japanese colonization have played a key role in shaping Taiwan’s buhaoyisi culture, the report said, although some argued that constantly apologizing for small inconveniences can do more harm than good and even affect your self-esteem.
Photo courtesy of Bella magazine
照片︰Bella儂儂雜誌
(Eddy Chang, Taipei Times)
英國廣播公司上週在標題為「不停道歉的島嶼」報導中指出,對外來者來說,台灣似乎是全世界最愛道歉的國家,常把「不好意思」(buhaoyisi)掛在嘴邊。「事實上,不好意思文化所顯露的是這個島國各種隱藏層次的謙遜、害羞等情緒,」這個萬用名詞還可用於幾乎所有情境。
雖然「不好意思」這四個字英文直譯為「不好的意思」或「不好的感覺」,但是說出該詞「就像打開潘朵拉的盒子,充斥著多種客氣含意。」而西方「抱歉」(excuse me)的概念則太過局限,無法涵蓋這個台灣流行語在社交禮儀和禮貌行為的各種意涵。
報導說,儒家道德教義和數十年日本殖民統治,對形塑台灣的不好意思文化扮演著關鍵角色。但也有人覺得,一直為了造成些微不便而道歉可能弊多於利,甚至還會影響到你的自我存在。
(台北時報張聖恩)
Huge stretches of coral reef around the world are turning a ghostly white this year amid record warm ocean temperatures. On April 15, the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration confirmed the world’s fourth mass global bleaching event is underway — with serious consequences for marine life and for the people and economies that rely on reefs. WHAT ARE CORALS? Corals are invertebrates that live in colonies. Their calcium carbonate secretions form hard and protective scaffolding that serves as a home to many colorful species of single-celled algae. The two organisms have evolved over millennia to work together, with corals providing shelter to algae,
Taiwanese cuisine boasts a rich culture of thick soups, with various options available at street vendors or high-end restaurants. In English, this style of dish is typically called “thick soup.” Western cuisine typically uses flour, cream, or mashed vegetables to create a creamy consistency, while in Taiwan, thick soups are made by simply incorporating food starch into the soup and creating a smooth and silky texture. Tutuo fish in thick soup is such a soup with fried tutuo fish chunks, shiitake mushrooms, bamboo shoots, and wood ears. 台灣羹品飲食文化豐富,無論是巷口小店或是高檔餐廳,都有提供羹料理。羹在英文稱作「濃湯」,西式濃湯是以麵粉、鮮奶油、蔬菜泥等達到濃稠的口感,台灣的羹湯用太白粉即能做出濃稠絲滑的湯頭。土魠魚羹就是在勾芡的羹湯中加入炸土魠魚塊、香菇、竹筍、木耳等食材的料理。 boast (v.) 擁有(令人驕傲的事物) consistency (n.) 濃稠度 chunk (n.) 厚塊,大塊 wood ear (n. ph.) 木耳 The star of this
In Taiwan, a quick stop at a local convenience store allows you to grab a hot dog whenever you want. But have you ever wondered how this popular snack got its unique name and became a leading light of American cuisine? First, the name “hot dog” is actually a combination of different ideas. Vendors called the sausages “red hot” to get customers to buy one fresh off their grills. As for the “dog” part, it’s a playful joke to compare the meat of the sausage to that of a dog—specifically , a dachshund. This small, long dog breed was
A symbol of purity and cleanliness, the color white is the standard color for coats worn by doctors. While this has been the case for well over 100 years, it hasn’t always been so. In fact, before the late 19th century, doctors wore formal black attire, which was similar to that worn by clergymen. Black was chosen for practical reasons—it hid stains from medical procedures and presented a sense of seriousness. The major reason for the color change of the doctor’s coat was to distinguish qualified, professional doctors from those with little or no medical training. Since medical science