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Word file #011RisingStories & games

What does donghua mean?

动画dònghuà

Say itDONG-hwahnoun

Character by character
  1. 动dòngmove
  2. 画huàpicture

Animation made in China, such as series and films; in Chinese, 动画 means animation from any country.

Written by the Second Language TeamWritten

Donghua is animation made in China: TV series, web series, and films [1]. English-speaking fans use it the way they use “anime” for Japan. You meet it on streaming sites, fan forums, and YouTube, often next to fantasy shows full of flying swords and very old immortals. In Chinese, though, 动画 just means animation of any kind. A Chinese speaker calls Disney films and Japanese anime 动画 too [1].

English speakers say DONG-hwah, and “hua” is one syllable, not two. The Mandarin word is 动画 dònghuà (traditional 動畫), literally “moving picture.” 动 dòng means “move” and 画 huà means “picture.” Both syllables have a falling tone, so they sound short and firm. In English, donghua is an informal fan word. It is neutral and fine anywhere, but people outside fan circles may not know it.

Word stats

Known in English
Fans of Chinese fantasy shows know it well. Most other English speakers have never heard it and might guess it is a kind of dumpling.
Said in China today
Chinese speakers say 动画 every day, but they mean all animation, including Disney and anime, not only shows from China.
Polite
A neutral fan word with nothing rude in it. Chinese studios even put 动画 in their own company names.
Freshness
More people look it up every year as Chinese shows find more English-speaking fans.

Spotted in the wild

Group chat · Friday, 9:40 pm
  1. Mayaneed a new show. finished my whole anime list
  2. Youtry donghua? chinese animation. the cultivation ones are wild
  3. Mayacultivation like… gardening?
  4. Youlike training for 500 years so you can fight on a flying sword
  5. Mayaok that beats gardening

What it means here: Donghua here means animation made in China; “cultivation” is a fantasy genre where heroes train for a very long time to become powerful.

Comments under a trailer
  1. Alexthis anime looks amazing, which studio made it?
  2. Priyait’s a donghua actually, a chinese studio made it
  3. Alexohh that explains the 3D
  4. Priyalots of them are 3D but not all. some are classic 2D

What it means here: Priya says donghua instead of anime because the show comes from China, not Japan; the 3D look is common but not part of the meaning.

Text with a friend from Shanghai
  1. Weimy little cousin watches 动画 all day
  2. Younice, which chinese shows?
  3. Weilol mostly peppa pig. 动画 just means cartoons for us

What it means here: For Wei, 动画 (dònghuà, “animation”) means any cartoon, even a British one about a pig.

How to use it

  • watch donghuaI’ve been watching more donghua than anime lately.
  • a donghua (one show)That donghua is based on a popular web novel.
  • donghua fans / the donghua communityDonghua fans have waited two years for season two.
  • anime or donghua?Is it anime or donghua? Check where the studio is.
  • the donghua adaptation of …The donghua adaptation of the manhua came out last summer.

Don’t say it like this

  • Sounds offDonghua is Chinese animation that copies the anime style.

    Say thisDonghua is animation made in China, in any style.

    The anime look and the 3D fantasy look are common in popular shows, but the word only says where the animation comes from.

  • Sounds offTelling a Chinese friend “I love 动画” and expecting them to think of Chinese shows.

    Say thisSay 中国动画 (Chinese animation) or 国漫 guómàn (Chinese animation and comics).

    In Chinese, 动画 means all animation, so your friend may picture Disney or Japanese anime.

  • Sounds off“dong-HOO-ah” (three syllables)

    Say this“DONG-hwah” (two syllables)

    “Hua” is one syllable in Chinese, said quickly like “hwah.”

donghua or not?

Is each of these donghua? Pick an answer to find out.

  1. A fantasy series about sword fighters, animated by a studio in Shanghai.

  2. A Japanese anime with a Mandarin dub, streaming in China.

  3. A live-action Chinese drama with real actors in historical costumes.

  4. A simple 2D comedy cartoon for young kids, made by a Chinese studio.

The donghua family

  • animeAnimation from Japan, in English. In Japanese, アニメ means any animation.Donghua’s older cousin, with the same trick: narrow in English, wide at home.
  • manhuaComics made in China; 漫画 mànhuà, literally “casual pictures.”Many donghua start life here. The pictures just had not started moving yet.
  • 动漫 dòngmànAnimation and comics together, from 动画 plus 漫画.One word for the whole hobby, so fans save a syllable.

Where it came from

  1. 1949–1976In the socialist era, 动画 mostly refers only to cel animation, meaning drawings painted on clear sheets and filmed one by one. The usual word for animated films is 美术片, “art film” [2].
  2. After 1978After Deng Xiaoping takes power, the meaning of 动画 slowly widens [2].
  3. 1980s onwardMany new animation studios use 动画 in the names of their companies and products, unlike the older Shanghai Animation Film Studio [2].
  4. Today动画 is the standard Chinese word for all kinds of animation, and English-speaking fans use donghua for animation made in China.

Donghua in English vs. 动画 in Chinese

In English, donghua names one country’s animation, like anime does for Japan. In Chinese, 动画 is simply the everyday word for animation.

PointEnglish donghuaChinese 动画
Main meaningAnimation made in ChinaAny animation, from any country
Includes Disney films?NoYes
Includes Japanese anime?NoYes
Who says itFans online, streaming sites, reviewersEveryone: parents, studios, the news
FeelingInformal fan wordStandard, neutral word

Fans often connect donghua with cultivation fantasy (xianxia), historical costumes, romance, and 3D computer animation. Many popular shows also adapt manhua (Chinese comics) or web novels. That describes a lot of well-known shows, but it is not what the word means. A simple 2D cartoon for small children, made by a Chinese studio, is donghua too.

The Chinese word has not always meant all animation. Chinese animation has had several names. From the late 1920s, people said 卡通 kǎtōng, from the English word “cartoon.” Under Mao, the usual name was 美术片 měishùpiàn or 美术电影 měishù diànyǐng, “art film,” and these terms are still used today [2]. The Association for Chinese Animation Studies (ACAS) says 动画 feels more modern and international to younger people, while 美术电影 brings back memories of the Mao era [2].

Japanese has a word written almost the same way: 動画 dōga. Some Chinese websites say Chinese borrowed the word from Japanese. ACAS thinks it is more likely that the word grew up in Japan and China at the same time, not one after the other [2]. There is no settled answer, so this page does not pick one.

We found no entry for donghua in major English dictionaries such as Oxford or Merriam-Webster. Collins has only a reader’s suggestion, which calls donghua Chinese animation “typically with an art style intended to replicate Japanese anime” [3]. That is one reader’s wording, not an accepted dictionary entry, and plenty of donghua looks nothing like anime.

Sources

  1. Chinese animationWikipedia
  2. Katong, Meishupian, and Donghua: On Terms of Chinese AnimationAssociation for Chinese Animation Studies, 2019-02-07
  3. Definition of DONGHUA | New Word SuggestionCollins English Dictionary

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