The Fuwa, formerly "Friendlies",^[1] are the mascots of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. The designs were created by Han Meilin, a famous artist in China.^[2] The designs were publicly announced by the National Society of Chinese Classic Literature Studies on November 11, 2005 at an event marking the 1000th day before the opening of the games. Map of eastern China and Taiwan, showing the historic distribution of Mandarin Chinese in light brown. ... Pinyin, more formally called Hanyu Pinyin (Simplified Chinese: ; Traditional Chinese: ; Pinyin: ), is the most common variant of Standard Mandarin romanization system in use. ... This article is about all of the Cantonese (Yue) dialects. ... Jyutping (sometimes spelled Jyutpin) is a romanization system for Standard Cantonese developed by the Linguistic Society of Hong Kong (LSHK) in 1993. ... Misha Since the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble, France the Olympic Games have a mascot, usually an animal native to the area or occasionally human figures representing the cultural heritage. ... The 2008 Summer Olympics (simplified Chinese: ; traditional Chinese: ; pinyin: ), officially known as the Games of the XXIX Olympiad, will be celebrated from August 8, 2008, to August 24, 2008, with the opening ceremony commencing at 08:08:08 pm CST (12:08:08 UTC) at the Beijing National Stadium in... Peking redirects here. ... is the 315th day of the year (316th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Description

The Fuwa group consists of five members according to the Chinese traditional five elements: Beibei, Jingjing, Huanhuan, Yingying, and Nini. Each of the five names is designed to look like a plausible name for a small child, while also achieving a more complex task: when the first syllable of each name is put together, it sounds nearly identical to the phrase "北京欢迎你", Běijīng huānyíng nǐ which means "Beijing welcomes you". Chinese Wood (木) | Fire (火) Earth (土) | Metal (金) | Water (æ°´) Japanese Earth (地) | Water (æ°´) | Fire (火) | Air / Wind (風) | Void / Sky / Heaven (空) Hinduism and Buddhism Vayu / Pavan — Air / Wind Agni / Tejas — Fire Akasha — Aether Prithvi / Bhumi — Earth Ap / Jala — Water In traditional Chinese philosophy, natural phenomena can be classified into the Five Elements (Chinese: ; Pinyin: ): wood, fire...

Two of the five mascots represent members of endangered species – Jingjing the giant panda and Yingying the Tibetan antelope. The other three, Beibei, Huanhuan and Nini, represent the sturgeon, the Olympic Flame and the swallow respectively. Each of the five figures also embodies the color of one of the five Olympic Rings. The Siberian Tiger is a subspecies of tiger that are critically endangered. ... Panda Bear redirects here. ... Binomial name Pantholops hodgsonii (Abel, 1826) The Tibetan antelope (Pantholops hodgsonii) is a medium-sized bovid which is about 1. ... For other uses, see Sturgeon (disambiguation). ... The flame at the 2002 Winter Olympics The Olympic Flame, Olympic Fire, Olympic Torch, Olympic Light, Olympic Eye, and Olympic Sun are all names for an important marketing promotion and symbol of the Olympic Games. ... For other uses, see Swallow (disambiguation). ... Among the recognizable Olympic symbols: The Olympic flag: A white flag with the Olympic Rings on it in five colours. ...

Mascots

Fuwa

Name	Bèibei (贝贝)	Jīngjing (晶晶)	Huānhuan (欢欢)	Yíngying (迎迎)	Nīni (妮妮)
Picture
Gender	Female	Male	Male	Male	Female
Olympic Ring	Blue	Black	Red	Yellow	Green
Element	Water	Wood	Fire	Earth	Air
Design	Chinese Sturgeon	Giant panda	Olympic Flame	Tibetan antelope	Swallow
Personality	gentle, pure	honest, optimistic	extrovert, enthusiastic	lively, vivacious	innocent, joyous
Represented ideal	prosperity	happiness	passion	health	good fortune
Represented sport	aquatic sports	weightlifting, judo, etc.	ball sports	track and field	gymnastics
Cultural inspiration	Chinese sturgeon; Traditional Chinese New Year decorative picture of lotus and fish; fish design from Neolithic artifacts	Giant panda; Song Dynasty lotus-shaped porcelain	Fire design from the Mogao Grottoes	Tibetan antelope, Tibetan and Xinjiang ethnic costumes	The swallow; Beijing's shayan kites
Notes	The Chinese sturgeon is largely dispersed over the main streams of the Yangtze River and coastal regions of Qiantang River, Minjiang River and Pearl River. It is a precious, but endangered species native to China. In traditional Chinese culture, the fish represents prosperity, as the character for fish (魚) sounds the same as that for surplus (餘 / 余). The "carp leaping over the dragon gate" is a traditional allegory of following one's dreams and achieving them. The patterns from Beibei's headgear comes from artifacts unearthed at Banpo, site of a Neolithic village of the Yangshao culture.	As an endangered species, the panda is both a national symbol of China and an international symbol of environmentalism. Jingjing's forest origins also symbolize the harmonious coexistence of humankind and nature.	Huanhuan represents the passion of sports, the Olympic spirit of "faster, higher, stronger", and the passion of the Beijing Olympics. Huanhuan's headgear comes from a fire design in the Mogao Caves, the best known of the Chinese Buddhist grottoes.	The Tibetan antelope is an endangered species native to the Tibetan Plateau, known for its swiftness. Yingying's headgear incorporates elements of Tibetan and Xinjiang ethnic costumes.	The swallow is a messenger of spring and happiness in Chinese culture, and is seen as a symbol of good fortune. The Chinese character for swallow (燕) is also used in Yanjing (燕京), an old name for Beijing; thus the swallow alludes to Beijing. Nini's headgear uses the design of Beijing's shayan kites, which are colourful cross-shaped kites modeled after swallows.

The Chinese Sturgeon is a member of the Acipenseridae family of Acipenseriformes order, with the scientific name of acipenser sinensis. ... Panda Bear redirects here. ... The flame at the 2002 Winter Olympics The Olympic Flame, Olympic Fire, Olympic Torch, Olympic Light, Olympic Eye, and Olympic Sun are all names for an important marketing promotion and symbol of the Olympic Games. ... Binomial name Pantholops hodgsonii (Abel, 1826) The Tibetan antelope (Pantholops hodgsonii) is a medium-sized bovid which is about 1. ... For other uses, see Swallow (disambiguation). ... A water sport is a form of recreation where water (other than drinking water) is an essential aspect of the activity. ... -1... This article is about the martial art and sport. ... Alternate uses: See Ball (disambiguation) A ball is a round object that is used most often in sports and games. ... Athletics, also known as track and field or track and field athletics, is a collection of sport events. ... Gymnastics is a sport involving the performance of sequences of movements requiring physical strength, flexibility, balance, endurance, gracefulness, and kinesthetic awareness, and includes such skills as handsprings, handstands, split leaps, aerials and cartwheels. ... The Chinese Sturgeon is a member of the Acipenseridae family of Acipenseriformes order, with the scientific name of acipenser sinensis. ... For other traditions of celebrating lunar new year, see Lunar New Year. ... For other uses, see Fish (disambiguation). ... An array of Neolithic artifacts, including bracelets, axe heads, chisels, and polishing tools. ... Panda Bear redirects here. ... For other uses, see Liu Song Dynasty. ... Binomial name Gaertn. ... “Fine China” redirects here. ... The Mogao Caves, or Mogao Grottoes (Chinese: ; Pinyin: ) form a system of 492 temples 25km (15. ... Binomial name Pantholops hodgsonii (Abel, 1826) The Tibetan antelope (Pantholops hodgsonii) is a medium-sized bovid which is about 1. ... This article is about historical/cultural Tibet. ... For the county in Shanxi province, see Xinjiang County. ... Genera Milvinae Harpagus Ictinia Rostrhamus Haliastur Milvus Lophoictinia Hamirostra Elaninae Elanus Chelictinia Machaerhamphus Gampsonyx Elanoides Kites are raptors with long wings and weak legs which spend a great deal of time soaring. ... Categories: Possible copyright violations ... Yangshao culture (仰韶文化) was a Neolithic culture that existed extensively along the central Yellow River in China. ... The Siberian Tiger is a subspecies of tiger that are critically endangered. ... The historic Blue Marble photograph, which helped bring environmentalism to the public eye. ... For other uses, see Fire (disambiguation). ... The Mogao Caves, or Mogao Grottoes (Chinese: ; Pinyin: ) form a system of 492 temples 25km (15. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Binomial name Pantholops hodgsonii (Abel, 1826) The Tibetan antelope (Pantholops hodgsonii) is a medium-sized bovid which is about 1. ... The Siberian Tiger is a subspecies of tiger that are critically endangered. ... Tibet Autonomous Region, Qinghai Province and Sichuan Province of China lie on the Tibetan Plateau. ... This article is about historical/cultural Tibet. ... For the county in Shanxi province, see Xinjiang County. ... Spring is one of the four temperate seasons. ...

Cultural influence and references

TV series

A 100-episode Olympic-themed cartoon series featuring the Fuwa was released in China, primarily on BTV (Beijing's municipal television network), on August 8, 2007. Titled The Olympic Adventures of Fuwa (Chinese: 福娃奥运漫游记), it was jointly produced by BTV and Kaku Cartoon.^[3] China Beijing TV Station (Chinese: 北京电视台, Pinyin: bÄ›i jÄ«ng diàn shì tái) is a government-owned television network in the Peoples Republic of China and is chiefly broadcasted in the Chinese language. ... is the 220th day of the year (221st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. ...

Video game

The characters made cameo appearances in the Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games video game. Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games , lit. ...

Curse of fuwa

In the months leading up to the Olympics, the Internet community has linked the Fuwa to various disasters that had occurred in China.^[4][5][6]

• Nini, a kite, has been linked to the "kite city" of Weifang, in Shandong, where the T195 train accident took place.

• Yingying, a tibetan antelope, which has been tied to the 2008 Tibetan unrest.

• Huanhuan, character with flame-red hair, has been linked to the many protests along the Summer Olympics torch relay.

• Jingjing, a panda, has been linked to the Sichuan earthquake since the epicenter of the earthquake was close to the Wulong Panda Research Center, China’s main breeding and conservation facility for its beloved national animal.

• Beibei is a fish. The disaster it is linked to the flash flooding in Southern China.

Genera Milvinae Harpagus Ictinia Rostrhamus Haliastur Milvus Lophoictinia Hamirostra Elaninae Elanus Chelictinia Machaerhamphus Gampsonyx Elanoides Kites are raptors with long wings and weak legs which spend a great deal of time soaring. ... Dongfeng Street in Downtown Weifang Weifang (潍坊; Pinyin: Wéifāng) is an important city in central Shandong province, China. ...   (Simplified Chinese: ; Traditional Chinese: ; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Shan-tung) is a coastal province of eastern Peoples Republic of China. ... Binomial name Pantholops hodgsonii (Abel, 1826) The Tibetan antelope (Pantholops hodgsonii) is a medium-sized bovid which is about 1. ... Panda may refer to: // Giant Panda Panda (plant), a genus of the family Euphorbiaceae PANDAS or P.A.N.D.A.S. is Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorders Associated with Streptoccal infections Qinling Panda, a subspecies of the Giant Panda. ...

References

is the 254th day of the year (255th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. ... is the 304th day of the year (305th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2008 (MMVIII) is the current year, a leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Era (or Anno Domini), in accordance with the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 167th day of the year (168th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2008 (MMVIII) is the current year, a leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Era (or Anno Domini), in accordance with the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 172nd day of the year (173rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2008 (MMVIII) is the current year, a leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Era (or Anno Domini), in accordance with the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 139th day of the year (140th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 2008 (MMVIII) is the current year, a leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Era (or Anno Domini), in accordance with the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 139th day of the year (140th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

External links

• The Official Mascots of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games (English)
• The Official Mascots of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games (Chinese)
• Comments on the linguistics of the Friendlies' names
• Fuwa Papercraft