True, telephone numbers in HK have 8 digits. But if someone from Hong Kong tells you that their phone number is 3062 4700, you better be careful, they are probably joking with you.
In HK, there is a well-known song called “A life of numbers” (數字人生) by George Lam (林子祥). The most interesting thing about this song is its lyrics are mainly numbers, numbers which appeared to be random and doesn’t make any sense at all*. It starts with the line “3 0624700”, which is why these 8 numbers become so famous. The choice of number “3” to start the song is probably not a coincidence, for the pronunciation of “3” is similar to “birth (生)” in Cantonese. The song also ends with the number “4”, which sounds like the word “death (死)” in Cantonese.
In fact, this song wants to bring out the role of numbers in our lives. Weight, IQ, the number of likes, the prices in the stock market… our lives are full of numbers, and there seems to be a growing trend of people basing their self-worth on these numbers. I guess I don’t have the repeat the tales of girls worrying endlessly about their weights, or stories of conspicuous consumption , to prove my point. While we all know that these numbers don’t define who we are, we constantly use them to judge ourselves and the others.
Maybe we should start rethinking the meaning of all these numbers now: Does your weight really matter? Or is it just another random number like “30624700”?
#Translation is located below
Some of you may have noticed that the melody is actually Bach’s Minuet in G major (A Lover’s Concerto by The Toys also use this melody). The perfect match between the beautiful melody and the numbers* makes this song really easy to remember. In fact, it is so famous that it was even used by the HK government for promoting the Budget Consultation…
Finally, I would like to end this post by saying that your views / likes are not just another random number, they mean a lot to me. And I would be delighted if you can share your thoughts and opinions on what I can improve!
Translation
|
Original Lyrics |
English Translation |
| ３ ０６２４７００ ３ ０６２４７７０ ５ ３４２０２ １３９４２ ４３１４ ０６２４ |
|
| ３ ０６２４７００３ ０６２４７７０ ５ ３４２０２ １３９４２ ４３１４ ０６２４ |
|
| 填滿一生 全是數字 |
Our life is filled with numbers. |
| 誰會真正知是何用意 |
Who can really understand the meanings behind? |
| 煩惱一生 全為數字 |
Our life is full of trouble, all because of numbers. |
| 圓滿的掌握問誰可以 |
Who can really have full control? |
| 明明刨正２、３ |
I expected 2 and 3 to win (in the horse race), |
| 為何彈出４、１ |
Why did 4 and 1 turn up? |
| 誰人能夠預知 ４點３４價位暴升 變左１００４ |
Who can predict that the stock price of 4.34 will skyrocket to 1004? |
| 憑號碼來認識 你的ＩＱ 你的身家 你的體魄 你的一切 |
Use numbers to learn about your IQ, your wealth, your health, your everything. |
| 人與數字有許多怪事 |
There are so many strange things about men and numbers. |
| 看看計數機裡幽禁幾多人質 |
Just look at how many hostages are trapped inside a calculator. |
| ０４３４ ０４３４ ０２３２ ０２３２ ０６４６ ０６４６ ０８７８ ０８７８ ０５１５ ０５１５ ０２４２ ０２４２ ０６９６ ０６９６ ０２７２ ０２７２３ ０６２４７００ ３ ０６２４７７０ ５ ３４２０２ １３９４２ ４３１４ ０６２４ ３ ０６２４７００ ０４３４ ０４３４ ０２３２ ０２３２ ３ ０６２４７００ |
*Of course, the numbers in this song are not truly random in the sense that their tones in Cantonese matched perfectly well with the melody. People who are familiar with Cantonese may know that there are 6 tones in the language. It is very important for the tone of the lyrics to match with the melody, as it will be far more easier to understand and remember the lyrics.
Hong Kong Song 