南橘北枳

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Chinese

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south mandarin orange
tangerine
north trifoliate orange
bitter orange(s)
trad. (南橘北枳)
simp. #(南橘北枳)

Etymology

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From an analogy in Yanzi chunqiu:

淮南相似不同所以水土 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
淮南相似不同所以水土 [Classical Chinese, simp.]
From: Annals of Master Yan, c. 3rd century BCE
Yīng wén zhī, jú shēng huáinán zé wéi jú, shēng yú huái běi zé wéi zhǐ, yè tú xiàngsì, qí shí wèi bùtóng. Suǒyǐ rán zhě hé? Shuǐtǔ yì yě. [Pinyin]
Yan Ying heard that tangerines grown south of the Huai River become mandarin oranges, while those grown in the north become trifoliate oranges. Their leaves are similar, but their flavors are not. So why does this happen? It is because of different environments.

Pronunciation

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Idiom

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南橘北枳

  1. the same thing will change when in different environments

Synonyms

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