The 60th anniversary of China’s Cultural Revolution
The series of ideological and political campaigns launched by Mao Zedong and conducted from 1966 to 1976 entered world history as the Cultural Revolution. The era began with the CPC Central Committee directive adopted on May 16, 1966, warning of the danger of a «capitalist revival» and calling for the prevention of a comeback by anti-communist forces.
China’s Cultural Revolution was not only a vast political and social upheaval but also a major linguistic phenomenon of the twentieth century. It was during this period that many Chinese words, slogans, and political terms first became known worldwide and entered foreign languages almost untranslated. Some became symbols of revolutionary radicalism, others named specific realities of Chinese life, and still others became international cultural and historical concepts. Their history shows how political events can influence global vocabulary and make national terminology part of the worldwide linguistic landscape.
- 文化大革命 — Wenhua da geming («Great Cultural Revolution»)
Word structure:
-
文化 (wenhua) — «culture»;
- 文 — «writing», «civilization»;
- 化 — «transformation», «change»;
- 大 (da) — «great», «large»;
-
革命 (geming) — «revolution»;
- 革 — «to replace», originally «to remove skin»;
- 命 — «mandate», «fate», «command».
Originally, 革命 meant changing the Mandate of Heaven and overthrowing a dynasty. In the twentieth century, it became a translation of the Western concept of «revolution».
The expression 文化大革命 appeared in the mid-1960s as the official name of the campaign initiated by Mao Zedong to «purify» Chinese society of «bourgeois» and «traditional» elements. It soon became known worldwide as the name of a period of political purges, mass youth mobilization, destruction of cultural heritage, and struggles within the party elite. In many languages, «Cultural Revolution» became an independent historical and political term associated with ideological radicalism and large-scale social upheaval.
- 红卫兵 — hongweibing («Red Guards»)
The word consists of three morphemes:
- 红 (hong) — «red», a symbol of revolution and communism;
- 卫 (wei) — «to guard», «to defend»;
- 兵 (bing) — «soldier», «warrior».
Literally: «red defender-soldiers».
The term emerged in 1966, when groups of school and university students began forming revolutionary youth units in support of Mao Zedong. The name emphasized their role as «defenders of the revolution». 红卫兵 quickly became internationally known: the foreign press used it widely without translation, and it subsequently entered dictionaries in many languages. The word is associated with mass campaigns against «old culture», persecution of teachers and intellectuals, public humiliation, and the cult of revolutionary youth.
- 大字报 — dazibao («wall newspaper in large characters»)
Word formation:
- 大 (da) — «large»;
- 字 (zi) — «character», «sign»;
- 报 (bao) — «newspaper», «notice».
Literally: «notice in large characters».
Although public written notices had long existed in China, 大字报 became especially prominent during the Cultural Revolution. Dazibao became a crucial tool of political struggle: accusations, denunciations, and ideological appeals were posted on the walls of universities, factories, and government institutions. In 1966, the publication of a dazibao at Peking University became one of the symbolic signals marking the Cultural Revolution’s beginning. Extensive foreign press coverage brought the term into many languages as a designation for public political agitation.
- 红包 — hongbao («red envelope»)
Consists of:
- 红 (hong) — «red»;
- 包 (bao) — «package», «envelope», «bundle».
Literally: «red package».
红包 considerably predates the Cultural Revolution and is connected with giving money in red envelopes at holidays and weddings. Under Maoism, however, red also acquired a pronounced political meaning as a symbol of revolution and correct ideology. During the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976), giving hongbao containing «lucky money» was harshly condemned and effectively pushed out of public life. In the campaign to destroy the «Four Olds», old customs, culture, habits, and ideas, the authorities regarded the practice as a survival of feudal and «bourgeois» traditions. Nevertheless, it survived within families and later revived rapidly. In the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries, the term spread worldwide alongside Chinese culture and digital technology: today, «hongbao» refers both to traditional gift envelopes and electronic money transfers in Chinese apps.
- 毛主义 — Maozhuyi («Maoism»)
Structure:
- 毛 (Mao) — Mao Zedong’s surname;
-
主义 (zhuyi) — «ideology», «doctrine», «-ism»;
- 主 — «main», «principal»;
- 义 — «idea», «principle».
The word follows the pattern used to translate European political ideologies into Chinese. The suffix-like element 主义 was widely used in the twentieth century to form terms such as «socialism» and «capitalism». 毛主义 spread internationally in the 1960s and 1970s, when Mao Zedong’s ideas began influencing left-wing movements in Asia, Africa, Europe, and Latin America. In many languages, «Maoism» came to denote a radical revolutionary ideology associated with a personality cult, mass mobilization, and the concept of continuous revolution.
- 大跃进 — Da yuejin («Great Leap Forward»)
Word formation:
- 大 (da) — «great»;
- 跃 (yue) — «to jump», «to leap»;
- 进 (jin) — «to advance».
Literally: «a great leap forward».
The term appeared in the late 1950s as the name of an accelerated industrialization and collectivization campaign. It was constructed as a typical slogan of the mobilization era, dynamic and emotionally charged. Although the Great Leap Forward preceded the Cultural Revolution, the two later came to be viewed as parts of a single historical era of Maoist experiments. In world historiography, «Great Leap Forward» became a symbol of utopian economic policy accompanied by grave social consequences and mass famine.
- 毛主席语录 — Mao zhuxi yulu («Quotations from Chairman Mao»)
Components:
- 毛 (Mao) — Mao Zedong;
- 主席 (zhuxi) — «chairman»;
-
语录 (yulu) — «sayings», «quotations»;
- 语 — «speech», «words»;
- 录 — «to record».
语录 had existed in the Chinese literary tradition since Confucian texts, denoting a teacher’s recorded sayings. In the 1960s, the collection of Mao Zedong’s statements gained official status as the era’s most important book. The Little Red Book became an obligatory sign of political loyalty and one of the Cultural Revolution’s most recognizable symbols. In many countries, «Mao’s quotations» and «Little Red Book» became cultural and political memes associated with mass ideological propaganda.
- 人民公社 — renmin gongshe («people’s commune»)
Structure:
- 人民 (renmin) — «people»;
-
公社 (gongshe) — «commune»;
- 公 — «public», «common»;
- 社 — «community», «organization».
The term arose during the collectivization of rural China in the late 1950s. People’s communes were conceived as a way to unite the rural population, production, everyday life, and local administration into one system. The name emphasized the organization’s collective nature. During the Cultural Revolution, communes became part of China’s everyday social structure and were frequently mentioned in the foreign press. As a result, «people’s commune» entered the international political vocabulary as a symbol of the Maoist project for a collective society.
- 毛派 / 毛主义者 — Maopai / Maozhuyizhe («Maoists»)
毛派
- 毛 (Mao);
- 派 (pai) — «school», «group», «faction».
毛主义者
- 毛主义 (Maoism);
- 者 (zhe) — a person-denoting suffix: «one who».
毛派 arose within Chinese political circles to designate supporters of Mao Zedong’s line. The more literary 毛主义者 appeared as a calque of European political terms such as «socialist» or «Marxist». In the 1960s and 1970s, the term spread worldwide through the strong influence of Chinese revolutionary rhetoric on foreign left-wing movements. In different countries, «Maoist» referred both to supporters of China’s model of socialism and to radical revolutionary groups inspired by the Cultural Revolution.
- 造反 — zaofan («to rebel», «to rise in revolt»)
The word consists of:
- 造 (zao) — «to create», «to initiate»;
- 反 (fan) — «against», «rebellion».
Literally: «to rise against authority».
This old Chinese word historically meant rebellion against the state or ruler and carried a strongly negative meaning for centuries. During the Cultural Revolution, however, it was reinterpreted and acquired positive revolutionary connotations through the slogan 造反有理, «Rebellion is justified». It became a symbol of revolutionary defiance and justification for attacks on party structures, teachers, and officials. This unusual reinterpretation of a traditional term made it widely known outside China.
Many words from the Cultural Revolution continue to live far beyond Chinese, preserving the memory of dramatic events in the second half of the twentieth century. Some entered scholarly and political vocabulary; others became part of popular culture and historical commentary. Their formation also clearly illustrates features of Chinese word formation: concision, imagery, and ideological expressiveness. Studying such terms helps us understand not only China’s history but also how language responds to major social changes, turning political slogans and everyday realities into international cultural symbols.