諺語 · a single proverb
安土重遷
Simplified: 安土重迁
What does 安土重遷 (ān tǔ zhòng qiān) mean?
安土重遷 (ān tǔ zhòng qiān) is a four-character classical idiom (chéngyǔ 成語). Word for word it reads "at peace with soil, consider moving seriously." In use it means: People are attached to their homeland and reluctant to leave; the weight of home. You reach for it when you want that idea in one breath, and the Earth note it carries is why we hand it to those born in the Year of the Ox.
Literally: "at peace with soil, consider moving seriously."
The reading
The soil of one's birth is not just earth but memory pressed into ground, and the foot that knows it does not lift easily. The reluctance to move is not weakness but depth: the recognition that what was built here took years and cannot be packed. Roots are not chains but choices that have grown heavy with time.
What kind of proverb it is
Source Han Shu 漢書·元帝紀 (Yuán Dì Jì)
Sits beside
外甥打燈籠——照舅（照舊）
wài shēng dǎ dēng long——zhào jiù (zhào jiù)
A pun on 照舅 (illuminating the uncle) and 照舊 (as before).
家有黃金，不如有個好鄰居
jiā yǒu huáng jīn bù rú yǒu gè hǎo lín jū
A good neighbor is worth more than household gold.
龍生龍，鳳生鳳，老鼠生的兒子會打洞
lóng shēng lóng, fèng shēng fèng, lǎo shǔ shēng de ér zi huì dǎ dòng
Children tend to inherit or follow the traits and social standing of their parents.
Keep reading
Return to the Proverb Pond to draw another of the eighty-seven, or hear one read aloud. Read the rest of its chapter in Home, Family & Roots, or follow the years these lines belong to: Year of the Ox, Year of the Rat, and Year of the Tiger.
Questions
Is 安土重遷 a real Chinese proverb?
Yes. 安土重遷 (ān tǔ zhòng qiān) is a four-character classical idiom (chéngyǔ 成語), and it comes from Han Shu 漢書·元帝紀 (Yuán Dì Jì). It is living Chinese heritage, given here with per-character pinyin and its source so you can trust the line, not a phrase invented in English.
How do you pronounce 安土重遷?
In Mandarin it is ān tǔ zhòng qiān. Read the pinyin above each character to follow the tones, or press the speaker beside the calligraphy to hear your browser read 安土重遷 aloud in Mandarin.