Coldplay chinese wordplay

ray · 04-02-2005, 03:56 PM

Hi all =)

I was just browsing through this excellent site when I came across the album cover for the Taiwan version of RoBttH.

This is what I'm referring to:

Don't know if anyone had brought it up before, but I didnt find anything similar through the "search" function, so here goes. Just a little something to share with the folks here.

Look at the equivalent chinese characters for Coldplay [酷玩] (you might have to switch your browser encoding to "Chinese Simplified" to see the characters)

Actually, my guess is that these came about from a mix of both phoenics and meaning.

The first - 酷 [ku4] ("koo") traditionally refered to the strength of wine. This character is also used in recent times as the phoenic and literal
equivalent to "cool". The marketing ppl must have been thinking Cool = Cold, with the original and modern meanings reinforcing the name. One may say that Coldplay's songs are both intoxicating and great for chillin out.

The second - 玩 [wan2] ("waan") means literally 'to play' - as in with toys or games. This is a direct translation.

Well, it was interesting for me, so I thought of sharing this with the community.

busybeeburns · 04-02-2005, 07:09 PM

thanks, didn't know that

berrywoman · 04-02-2005, 07:16 PM

wow! that was "koo" heehee you learn something new everyday..

cheers!

gib786 · 04-02-2005, 08:03 PM

酷

ray · 05-02-2005, 03:58 AM

thx guys. Im feel honoured to have the mods replying

enjoy your day! Im hitting the books

Gas_Man · 05-02-2005, 10:07 PM

i have both albums from Taiwan, and it looks like you've paid more attention than i have. Well Done. Welcome to the board Ray

staring elf · 06-02-2005, 09:45 AM

Has anyone heard the chinese version of 'yellow'? I heard it once/ twice on the radio station here, just thought it was kinda bad

Eagle131 · 06-02-2005, 05:03 PM

Almost every chinese thing sucks cept chinese food

They ban everything too! Even banned Spies!!

nightsurfer · 20-02-2005, 09:18 AM

Quote:
Originally Posted by staring elf
Has anyone heard the chinese version of 'yellow'? I heard it once/ twice on the radio station here, just thought it was kinda bad

The Chinese cover EVERYTHING (song wise). And they suck. (The songs, not the Chinese)

BlueMind · 21-02-2005, 04:47 AM

i've learned Chinese before and know some Chinese culture.

nightsurfer · 21-02-2005, 07:11 AM

I've spent 6 years in Chinese vernacular school... so technically I can speak, read and write Chinese...

But now I'm down to writing and speaking cos I can't really read the Chinese newspapers. (It's also out of personal preference - I'd prefer reading English to Chinese)

BlueMind · 21-02-2005, 07:43 AM

i can

04-02-2005, 03:56 PM	#1
ray Coldplayer Join Date: Feb 2005 Posts: 34 Location: Singapore Chat posts: 0 Thanks given: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Coldplay chinese wordplay Hi all =) I was just browsing through this excellent site when I came across the album cover for the Taiwan version of RoBttH. This is what I'm referring to: Don't know if anyone had brought it up before, but I didnt find anything similar through the "search" function, so here goes. Just a little something to share with the folks here. Look at the equivalent chinese characters for Coldplay [酷玩] (you might have to switch your browser encoding to "Chinese Simplified" to see the characters) Actually, my guess is that these came about from a mix of both phoenics and meaning. The first - 酷 [ku4] ("koo") traditionally refered to the strength of wine. This character is also used in recent times as the phoenic and literal equivalent to "cool". The marketing ppl must have been thinking Cool = Cold, with the original and modern meanings reinforcing the name. One may say that Coldplay's songs are both intoxicating and great for chillin out. The second - 玩 [wan2] ("waan") means literally 'to play' - as in with toys or games. This is a direct translation. Well, it was interesting for me, so I thought of sharing this with the community.

04-02-2005, 07:09 PM	#2
busybeeburns mr coldplaying himself Join Date: Sep 2002 Posts: 46,333 My Mood: Location: test Gender: Country: Seen CP: 20 times Fav. CP album: X&Y Fav. CP song: GPASUYF Fav. CP member: Chat posts: 4 Thanks given: 1,548 Thanked 934 Times in 420 Posts	thanks, didn't know that __________________ The early bird catches the worm. The second mouse gets the cheese!

04-02-2005, 07:16 PM	#3
berrywoman Guy-a-licious Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 27,692 My Mood: Location: New York Cares Gender: Country: Chat posts: 0 Thanks given: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	wow! that was "koo" heehee you learn something new everyday.. cheers! __________________ http://www.last.fm/user/berrychen/ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ http://nyc-specialist.tumblr.com/

04-02-2005, 08:03 PM	#4
gib786 Coldplayer Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 425 My Mood: Location: Leeds Gender: Country: Chat posts: 0 Thanks given: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	酷 __________________ http://i216.photobucket.com/albums/c.../cldplysig.jpg Life Is For Living We All Know, And I Don't Wanna Live It Alone

05-02-2005, 10:07 PM	#6
Gas_Man Coldplayer Join Date: Jul 2003 Posts: 2,200 Location: Durham - England Chat posts: 0 Thanks given: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	i have both albums from Taiwan, and it looks like you've paid more attention than i have. Well Done. Welcome to the board Ray __________________ www.myspace.com/moleckband

05-02-2005, 03:58 AM	#5
ray Coldplayer Join Date: Feb 2005 Posts: 34 Location: Singapore Chat posts: 0 Thanks given: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	thx guys. Im feel honoured to have the mods replying enjoy your day! Im hitting the books

06-02-2005, 09:45 AM	#7
staring elf ex bunny eater Join Date: Apr 2003 Posts: 7,657 Location: Woodlands, Singapore. Gender: Country: Chat posts: 0 Thanks given: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Has anyone heard the chinese version of 'yellow'? I heard it once/ twice on the radio station here, just thought it was kinda bad __________________ Eg élska Sigur Rós.

06-02-2005, 05:03 PM	#8
Eagle131 Coldplayer Join Date: Nov 2004 Posts: 684 Gender: Country: Chat posts: 0 Thanks given: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Almost every chinese thing sucks cept chinese food They ban everything too! Even banned Spies!! __________________ http://myspace.com/eruoss - My Music

20-02-2005, 09:18 AM	#9
nightsurfer Coldplayer Join Date: Aug 2003 Posts: 736 Location: Kuala Lumpur Gender: Country: Chat posts: 0 Thanks given: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Quote: Originally Posted by staring elf Has anyone heard the chinese version of 'yellow'? I heard it once/ twice on the radio station here, just thought it was kinda bad The Chinese cover EVERYTHING (song wise). And they suck. (The songs, not the Chinese) __________________ My blog - The Ranting Cynic "We're a boy band you can like" - Chris "It's amazing how we can be here three years in a row and they still mistake us for the people that fill the seats" - Will Champion, 2003 Grammys Yes, I've seen Coldplay: Milwaukee '06, Singapore '06 and in 2009.

21-02-2005, 04:47 AM	#10
BlueMind Coldplayer Join Date: Feb 2005 Posts: 85 Chat posts: 0 Thanks given: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	i've learned Chinese before and know some Chinese culture.

21-02-2005, 07:11 AM	#11
nightsurfer Coldplayer Join Date: Aug 2003 Posts: 736 Location: Kuala Lumpur Gender: Country: Chat posts: 0 Thanks given: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	I've spent 6 years in Chinese vernacular school... so technically I can speak, read and write Chinese... But now I'm down to writing and speaking cos I can't really read the Chinese newspapers. (It's also out of personal preference - I'd prefer reading English to Chinese) __________________ My blog - The Ranting Cynic "We're a boy band you can like" - Chris "It's amazing how we can be here three years in a row and they still mistake us for the people that fill the seats" - Will Champion, 2003 Grammys Yes, I've seen Coldplay: Milwaukee '06, Singapore '06 and in 2009.

21-02-2005, 07:43 AM	#12
BlueMind Coldplayer Join Date: Feb 2005 Posts: 85 Chat posts: 0 Thanks given: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	i can