Sānbā Means Insult Bitch Foreigners Sahn Bah Literally

三八

sānbā

In Taiwan this just means “silly” and is said of both males and females, but on the mainland it is a very strong insult for a woman, similar to “bitch” or “slut.” (Though sometimes it just means “gossipy.”) Literally, it means “three eight,” for which there are two explanations. One is that during the Qing dynasty (1644-1911) foreigners were supposedly only allowed to circulate on the eighth, eighteenth, and twenty-eighth of each month, and thus foreigners were called, somewhat scornfully, sānbā for the three eights. Another explanation is that sānbā refers to International Women’s Day, which is on March 8. In contexts when it means “bitch” or “slut,” it’s common to amp up the strength of sānbā as an insult by saying 死三八 sǐ sānbā (sih sahn bah), literally “dead bitch,” or 臭三八 chòu sānbā (choe sahn bah), literally “stinking bitch.”