tang ping

English

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tang ping

Etymology

From Mandarin 躺平 (tǎngpíng, “lie flat”); compare Cantonese 躺平 (tong² ping⁴), Teochew 躺平 (tang² bên⁵). Attested in English from 2021 (see quotations below).

Noun

tang ping (uncountable)

(China, neologism) A lifestyle and social protest movement in China beginning in April 2021, which is a rejection of societal pressures to overwork. [from 2021]
Synonym: lying flat
- 2021 June 3, “China's new 'tang ping' trend aims to highlight pressures of work culture”, in BBC News‎^[1]:
  The new trend, known as "tang ping", is described as an antidote to society's pressures to find jobs and perform well while working long shifts.
- 2022 February 22, “What is the ‘Tang ping’ movement started by young Chinese who are against overworking?”, in Malay Mail, Kuala Lumpur:
  A growing number of Chinese youth want to “lie flat.” This is the literal translation of what the expression “Tang ping” means in Chinese. Since last year, the trend has resurfaced. The generation born after 1995 claims to be “Tang ping” and rejects the 10-hours-a-day, 6-days-a-week work model.
- 2023 April 1, Fran Lu, “‘Making money while lying flat’: Chinese movie star Ge You pockets US$1.1 million from hundreds of lawsuits over famous ‘tang ping’ TV character”, in South China Morning Post (Online)‎^[2], Hong Kong:
  Images of Ji lazily “lying flat” on the sofa has become a viral internet meme, and even leading to the posture receiving a nickname “Ge You tang”, or Ge You-esque slouching, since 2016, when the “tang ping” culture was on the rise in China.
- 2022 November 2, Han-Yu Hsu, “How do Chinese people evaluate “Tang-Ping” (lying flat) and effort-making: The moderation effect of return expectation”, in Frontiers in Psychology‎^[3], New York:
  (please add the primary text of this quotation)
  “Tang-Ping” (TP), referring to “lying flat” literally, has been a buzzword in China web media since 2021. As the opponent of effort-making (EM) behaviors which have both instrumental and purpose values in Confucian culture, TP has a negative moral implication in China and has been criticized by the state-owned media.

Usage notes

The popularity of the Chinese term traces to a 2021 post by Luo Huazhong on the internet forum Baidu Tieba, in which he discussed his reasons for living a low-key, minimalist lifestyle.^[1]

References

^ Elsie Chen (2021 July 4) “For Young People in China, ‘Lying Flat’ Beats Working”, in New York Times, page A4: “Mr. Luo’s blog post was removed by censors, who saw it as an affront to Beijing’s economic ambitions. Mentions of “lying flat” — tangping, as it’s known in Mandarin — are heavily restricted on the Chinese internet.”

[1] Elsie Chen (2021 July 4) “For Young People in China, ‘Lying Flat’ Beats Working”, in New York Times, page A4: “Mr. Luo’s blog post was removed by censors, who saw it as an affront to Beijing’s economic ambitions. Mentions of “lying flat” — tangping, as it’s known in Mandarin — are heavily restricted on the Chinese internet.”

[1]