Descendants of the Dragon
| "Descendants of the Dragon" | |
|---|---|
| Single by Lee Chien-Fu (Li Jianfu) | |
| from the album Descendants of the Dragon | |
| Released | 1980 |
| Genre | Campus folk song[1] |
| Label | Synco Records (新格唱片),[2] later Rock Records |
| Songwriter(s) | Hou Dejian |
"Descendants of the Dragon" (simplified Chinese: 龙的传人; traditional Chinese: 龍的傳人; pinyin: lóng de chuán rén) is a Chinese song written by Hou Dejian. Today, this song is regarded by the global Chinese community as an expression of Chinese nationalitic sentiment, and the song title has become a popular propaganda idiom.
Background
[change | change source]The song was written in late 1978 by Taiwanese songwriter Hou Dejian. When Hou was still a student, he initially wrote this song as a protest against United States' diplomatic recognition of People's Republic of China.[3] [4] The song was released in 1980 and became highly successful in Taiwan. [5]
Hou later emigrated to mainland China in 1983, where the song also became popular. The government interprets as a call for unification and the catch phrase "Descendants of the Dragon (龍的傳人)" is now much more often mentioned in China than in Taiwan.[3] It became at one time the most popular pop song ever released in China.[6]
References
[change | change source]- ↑ Hui-Ching Chang; Richard Holt (20 November 2014). Language, Politics and Identity in Taiwan: Naming China. Routledge. p. 93. ISBN 978-1-135-04635-4.
- ↑ "新格唱片出版目錄：1977～1986". Douban.
- 1 2 Philip V. Bohlman, ed. (December 2013). The Cambridge History of World Music. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-86848-8.
- ↑ Chou, Oliver (11 November 2015). "Rallying cry of an oppressed nation: 1980s hit song still captures Chinese hearts 35 years on, Taiwanese singer Lee Chien-fu says". South China Morning Post.
- ↑ Hui-Ching Chang, Richard Holt (2006). "The Repositioning of "Taiwan" and "China": An Analysis of Patriotic Songs of Taiwan" (PDF). Intercultural Communication Studies. XV (1): 94–108.
- ↑ Barmé, Geremie (6 May 1999). In the Red: On Contemporary Chinese Culture. Columbia University Press. p. 221. ISBN 978-0-231-50245-0.