[Cultural differences] The word 大腕

kimiik
 February 12, 2009, 10:29 AM posted in General Discussion

I'm looking for the origin of the chinese slang "大腕" (literally "Big Wrist") describing someone famous / a celebrity.

Does it come from 手腕 (skill) or from 肉 (flesh) ?

btw, in french a man having a strong wrist or big wrist means something totally different. It's a very bad idea to translate 大腕 word for word.

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pearltowerpete
 February 13, 2009, 03:26 AM

Hi kimiik

I looked briefly into this on Baidu, but the best I came up with is that broad wrists are a sign of power, strength, etc.

Funny that the French implication (which I can guess) is also logical.

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changye
 February 13, 2009, 03:49 AM

我最喜欢的香港女演员就是关之琳！特别是《黄飞鸿》系列电影中的关之琳太可爱，大家看过没有？

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daizi
 February 14, 2009, 09:40 PM

It also has the not-unrelated meaning of master hand.

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yunanzhou
 February 15, 2009, 12:37 PM

every Chinese slang has its origin. if you trace its origin,you could also learn Chinese logic thinking as well. interesting ,right? my msn address is jinglyjingyi@live.cn.  if you'd like to discuss with me about Chinese culture,don't hesitate to contact me.