Knowing Pinyin

The survey found that the most widely used Chinese terms transcribed in pinyin are things or phenomena unique to China, such as hukou (residential registration system), hongbao and hutong (alleyway), and classics like "yin and yang".

Although words such as "kung fu" and "tofu" have been incorporated into English, the survey shows that they also appear in English-speaking countries in their pinyin forms.

And while terms such as the Chinese Dream, "a community with a shared future", Two Sessions and Belt and Road Initiative, are written in their English translations, they are also understood in English-speaking countries in the form of pinyin.

But despite English speakers in the eight countries being familiar with words such as hotpot, they are not familiar with its pinyin spelling. Similar is the case for chunjie, which is more commonly known as Spring Festival in the eight countries. As a result, English speakers are more familiar with the terms chongyang and qingming, Yang says.