“土豪，我們做朋友吧！”

One of the hottest buzzwords in China right now is no doubt tuhao, a sarcastic, light-hearted term referring to rich people of little education, bad taste or lacking self-awareness.

眼下，中國最熱門詞匯非“土豪”莫屬。這是一個帶有諷刺和戲謔意味的詞，指的是那些受教育不多、品味差且不自覺的富人們。

This is yet another example of smart Chinese Internet users applying their creativity to an aged phrase and giving it new life and meaning. The term, which literally means “country bully”, has been around since ancient times, when it was used to refer to rich and powerful rural landlords who defied laws and maltreated their tenants and peasants. In the age of class struggle, tuhao were among the worst enemies of the working class.

這回，中國網(wǎng)友再次發(fā)揮了聰明才智、別出心裁地為這個老詞注入新的生命和含義。“土豪”一詞由來已久，其字面意思指的是鄉(xiāng)匪惡霸，曾統(tǒng)指那些有錢有勢、目無王法、剝削佃戶和農民的地主們。在階級斗爭時代，土豪是工人階級最大的敵人之一。

However, the meaning of the word changed significantly when it was adapted a few years ago by Chinese players of the wildly popular computer game World of Warcraft to refer to rich players who spend big money to buy powerful virtual weapons. Because they don’t improve their skills by playing, these players are considered silly, uncultured, and unprofessional.

而當幾年前，該詞到了中國“魔獸迷”們口中，意思就徹底變了，它被用來指代那些為虛擬武器裝備一擲千金的有錢玩家。因為這些人不愿靠打裝備來提升技能，所以他們也成為了愚蠢、沒文化以及外行的代名詞。

But that is not the end of tuhao’s new life story. The renewed popularity of the term also coincides with the emergence of the Chinese “nouveau riche” — a generation of businessmen and women, property owners and entrepreneurs who have rapidly amassed large amounts of wealth in recent years.

而到此，全新的“土豪”進化史并未劃上句點。這一“咸魚翻身”的詞匯與漢語里的“暴發(fā)戶”一詞不謀而合，后者指的是近來年那些“一夜暴富”的商人、富婆、業(yè)主以及企業(yè)家們。

Bad taste

品味低俗

Similar to the many rags-to-riches stories in human history, many Chinese billionaires who are on the global rich list do not come from well-educated or prestigious backgrounds. Rather, they achieved financial success through powerful connections, smart investments, and by riding out China’s economic miracle. Many of them don’t shy away from throwing their money around.

同人類史上眾多白手起家的故事一樣，很多登上全球富豪榜的中國富豪受教育程度不高，也沒有顯赫的身世。盡管如此，但他們通過強大的人脈，精明的投資并借助中國式經(jīng)濟奇跡的東風，最終獲得成功。他們中的很多人可謂揮金如土。

As we read stories in the international and Chinese media of rich Chinese investors snatching up red-hot property in Manhattan, London, and Paris, or raising eyebrows at international auction houses andyacht shows, we are often reminded of their lack of manners, taste and cultural sensitivity.

當我們在國內外媒體上看到中國富豪投資者將曼哈頓、倫敦和巴黎炙手可熱的房產(chǎn)搶購一空，或是在國際拍賣行和游艇展上的驚人表現(xiàn)時，我們經(jīng)常會意識到他們是“教養(yǎng)、品味、文化”的三無人群。

As a result, a term that was popularized in the gaming world has now also been introduced into daily conversation. Now, the term is widely considered to mean “vulgar, tasteless, rich people”.

因此，一個網(wǎng)游流行詞匯就這樣被引入了日常語言之中。現(xiàn)在，該詞泛指那些“舉止粗俗，毫無品位可言的富人們”。

Trendy, young Internet users, who see themselves as the opposite of tuhao — not wealthy, but well-educated and cultured — have further popularized the term by using it in various comic situations, atprominent news events, or coining new catch phrases with it.

時尚的年輕網(wǎng)友們把自己看做是“土豪”的反義詞——沒錢，卻有文化有教養(yǎng)。他們將這些運用到各種漫畫場景以及新聞頭條中，并創(chuàng)造出一系列熱門口頭禪，這下，“土豪”大火特火。

For example, the phrase “let’s be friends, tuhao,” went viral after it appeared in an online joke about a conversation between a rich young man and a wise monk.

例如，“土豪，我們做朋友吧!”這句話最初出現(xiàn)在一個年輕富豪對話聰明和尚的網(wǎng)絡段子里，隨即引發(fā)網(wǎng)友瘋傳。

When Apple released its much anticipated iPhone 5S in September, Chinese Internet users accurately predicted the immense popularity of the new golden-colored models among Chinese consumers, and named it “tuhao Gold”, to mock the taste of rich Chinese people.

當蘋果公司九月發(fā)布萬眾期待的iPhone5S時，中國網(wǎng)友們準確地預測出金色款iPhone5S將受到中國消費者的熱捧，為了嘲弄中國富豪們的品味，將其命名為“土豪金”。