In China, lucky numbers have pronunciations that are similar to words with lucky meanings. Number 8 holds a huge significance as a lucky number.
To a lesser extent 2, 6, and 9 are considered lucky. 4 is the most unlucky number in China. Interestingly, you will notice this in building elevators which usually omit this number. Here’s an image of the elevator for even-numbered floors where number 4 is not mentioned at all. To add, gifting money or any object that has the digit 4 (40 or 14 RMB) associated with it is considered inauspicious.
This factor cascades down to the way products are priced in China as opposed to other countries and the cash amounts presented in red envelopes and other forms of gifting.
The numbers 4, 14 and 24 are associated with death for Cantonese-speaking Chinese people, as the words for these numbers sound like the words for “death”, “must die” and “easy to die”, respectively.
A previous study in the United States investigating psychological stress engendered by fear of the number 4 found more cardiac deaths in Chinese and Japanese people, compared with white Americans, on the 4th day of the month.
As well as these general number superstitions, fengshui and the Chinese zodiac dictate the different numbers of luck for different places/people. ‘8’ is the most favored number in modern China due to its association with wealth and luck.
The Chinese love this number both in trivial matters and in big moments. 8 is given the highest priority when buying a number plate or buying a house.
For example, an apartment on the eighth floor will be most coveted in that entire building. Or an address with the number 8 in it will be considered lucky. Car number plates containing 8 would be sold at higher prices than regular ones. Mobile numbers are preferred if they contain one or more 8s.
8 is considered lucky and favored by the Chinese because it holds meaning in both traditional and modern cultures. In Taoist culture, 8 is associated with wholeness and completeness. According to I Ching (易经), the bagua (八卦), or the eight trigrams, are the foundation that generates everything.
The Eight Directions (Bafang 八方) represent the whole universe in the Taoist spatial conception. These eight directions are also used to explain individual destiny, as in Bazi (八字), a Chinese fortune-telling method that depicts one’s life course according to the trigram of one’s date of birth.
In the Chinese language, ‘8’ appears in many auspicious expressions, which are often a combination of the traditional and modern meanings of the number. For example:
“Bamian laicai.” (八面来財 ‘8 sides coming wealth’), for example, means wealth coming from all corners of the world.
“Bamian chunfeng” (八面春风 ‘8 sides spring wind’), i.e. spring wind from eight directions, expresses the wish that one gets luck wherever s/he goes, or whatever s/he is working on.
The characters 發春 (发春 fachun /faa chwnn/ ‘to develop (wealth) + spring’) is popularly displayed at Chinese New Year, expressing wishes for increasing wealth in the coming year.
