faa1 maa5花碼花码
Jyutpingfaa1 maa5
Yalefā máh
Definition
Suzhou numerals; a traditional numeral system once widely used in markets and shops.
colloquialnumbersplaces
How it's used
These numerals are primarily found on handwritten price tags in traditional wet markets or old-fashioned eateries. They are read vertically, and the system includes specific symbols for place values like ten, hundred, and thousand written below the main digits. While they are rapidly disappearing from modern life, they remain a distinct part of local visual culture.
Examples
This vegetable stall is still using Suzhou numerals to write the prices.
Do you know how to read these numbers written in Suzhou numerals?
Related words
Common mistake
Learners often confuse the symbol for one, two, and three with the standard Chinese characters 一, 二, and 三, but in this system, they are written as vertical strokes 〡, 〢, and 〣 to prevent alteration or confusion with other strokes.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Pronoun
Classifier
Particle
Connector
Grammar guides
- Directional complementsThe small words added after a verb to show direction of movement, like up, down, out, in, and back. Common in everyday Cantonese.
- DemonstrativesThis and that with 呢 and 嗰, the personal pronouns, and how 哋 turns I, you, and he into we, you all, and they.
- Resultative complementsSticking a result word onto a verb to show how it turned out, like eat until full or look and find. A productive everyday pattern.
