Английская Википедия:Auspicious train ticket
Auspicious train tickets[1] (Шаблон:Zh) refer to train tickets with auspicious messages on them derived from the beginning and end stations on the ticket. Messages often employ homophonic puns in both Mandarin and Hokkien and shuffling the order of characters to reach the desired effect. In Taiwan, the Edmondson tickets are sought by collectors and people wishing for good luck.[1][2]
History
In 1973, an NHK television show in Obihiro, Hokkaido, Japan reported that tickets from Kōfuku Station and Aikoku Station carried an auspicious meaning. The kanji of the two characters could be interpreted as "happiness" and "country of love", respectively. The two stations then saw a surge of tourists seeking the tickets.[3][4]
In 1993, after preservation work was completed at Bao'an railway station, the Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA) sought to promote the historic station for tourism. Railway researcher Ming-xun Hsieh (Шаблон:Zh) proposed that the TRA sell special edition tickets from Yongkang railway station. Hsieh was inspired by the Kōfuku–Aikoku ticket's success in attracting visitors and believed the same strategy would work in Taiwan as well.[2] The ticket's characters, when read in a clockwise fashion, read "Yongbao Ankang" (Шаблон:Zh), which meant "peace and health forever."[1] The ticket became an unexpected hit and started the practice of collecting auspicious train tickets.[2]
The Yongbao Ankang tickets saw a surge of popularity on 9 September 2010. Tickets in Taiwan are printed with the date and time when entering the station. Since the year 2010 is year 99 on the Minguo calendar, the printed "99-09-09" was seen as especially auspicious since nine (九) is pronounced the same way as (Шаблон:Zh), the character for "long time". The limited edition tickets, which were printed on thicker paper, sold out very quickly.[5]
Types
| Name | Stations | Literal meaning | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Шаблон:Lang | Yǒngbǎo Ānkāng | Шаблон:Stnlnk–Шаблон:Stnlnk | Peace and health forever | Read in a counter-clockwise manner.[1] |
| Шаблон:Lang | Zhuīfēn Chénggōng | Шаблон:Stnlnk–Chenggong | Acquire points successfully | Given to students about to take a high school or university entrance exam.[6] |
| Шаблон:Lang | Dàdù Chénggōng | Шаблон:Stnlnk–Шаблон:Stnlnk | Big belly successfully | Refers to a successful pregnancy.[2] |
| Шаблон:Lang | Chénggōng Guīlái | Chenggong–Шаблон:Stnlnk | Return successfully | Given to males serving in Taiwan's mandatory military service.[2] |
| Шаблон:Lang | Línběi Táidà | Шаблон:Stnlnk–Шаблон:Stnlnk | Your father is from National Taiwan University | Read in a clockwise manner. In Hokkien, "your father" refers to oneself from a higher position, while National Taiwan University (NTU) is regarded as the best university in Taiwan.[2] |
| Шаблон:Lang | Qìngzhòng Táidà | Шаблон:Stnlnk–Шаблон:Stnlnk | Celebrating getting into National Taiwan University | Read in a clockwise manner.[6] |
| Шаблон:Lang | Jíān Shòufēng | Шаблон:Stnlnk–Шаблон:Stnlnk | Luck, peace, longevity, and abundance | All four characters considered auspicious.[2] |
| Шаблон:Lang | Jiālù Dōnghǎi | Шаблон:Stnlnk–Шаблон:Stnlnk | Rising salary, East Sea | Shortened form of Шаблон:Lang ("rising rank and increasing salary, fortune as vast as the East Sea").[7] |
| Шаблон:Lang | Rónghuá Fùguì | Шаблон:Stnlnk–Шаблон:Stnlnk | Wealth and honor | In 2003, the Taiwan Railway Administration renamed Nanhe station to Fugui station in order to pair it with Ronghua station in a manner similar to "Yongbao Ankang".[8] |
References
