Hi, everyone. And welcome back to Britain Under the Microscope. 欢迎回来【闲话英伦】. Hello, 安澜.

Hi Lulu. Hi, everyone.

So let me propose a topic.

Okay.

This is a question that has been bugging me for ages.

There's one word in British culture that I find very difficult to translate correctly or accurately into Chinese. This is the word posh, p-o-s-h. I know some of you listening to this show, you probably think Lulu you're a translator, easy, just look it up online and dictionary. But it's not so much I don't know the word because that has so much cultural connotation.

Yes, the idea of posh really changes its meaning constantly.

So first things first, if you look it up in English-Chinese dictionary, ‘posh’ probably can be translated into上流社会的,优雅的, things like that. But it has so many more meanings. The first question I'm gonna ask you is posh a good word or a bad word.

It depends.

I knew it.

So for example, you use the Chinese word 优雅 which is more elegant in English. Now we could describe a place as posh, so a posh restaurant, a posh car, posh clothes. That just means it's expensive, it's high quality, fancy, it's fancy, it's luxurious, maybe. But it's when you describe somebody as posh that becomes a bit negative.

If I say 安澜 is really posh.

I would not take that as a compliment.

So if you say someone is really posh, they have posh accent, what you’re doing is you're being a little bit negative.

You're saying they're pretentious.

Pretty much.

就是有点装. 对吧？装着高大上的感觉.

Pretentious and also snobbish as well.

Snobbish means... meaning you look down on other people, you think you're better. But keep in mind. Posh is very subtle. If you use it to describe things, locations, it's good, it means luxurious, expensive; but use it to describe people usually quite negative, it focuses more on snobbery and pretentious.

Yes, that's right.

But that still hasn't answered the question. What is posh? Seriously, what is... well I know you're not.

I'm not, very much, common as Muck.

What is posh? Is it just higher class?

Mostly, yes. Now to be posh is not just about money. Is you have a certain family background, you have a certain identity around kind of where you live, what you do and also the people that you hang out with.

It still sounds really vague. I mean if only there’s some sort of criteria.

Funny you should say that, there was actually a survey in 2021 on how do you know if someone is posh？

Okay, let's hear that.

So these are the top 10 signs that someone is posh.

大家听听这个英国人自己评选出来的10条, 这10条如果你都中了或者中了绝大多数, 你就是英国人眼里的posh. So let's hear it.

So number one, you went to boarding school.

Isn't boarding school just when you actually live in school on campus就是寄宿学校. In China boarding school is just... boarding is just a function.

Yeah, no, in the UK, boarding school or private school is incredibly posh because they're very expensive.

Like Eton.

It’s a boarding school.

It’s a boarding school, 伊顿公学就这种都是boarding school. That explains a lot because I went to a boarding school in China.

And you're not posh.

Thank you. When I tell people in Britain, they look at me like your family's got money.

Well, exactly.

These type of boarding schools, they actually become very important in people's lives. They are the idea of the old boy network.

The old boy network is the alumni, is basically people your schoolmates.

Because you come from the same background or very similar backgrounds, same class, so you end up doing the same jobs.

So this is number one. You went to boarding school. Sign number one, we have nine other signs. Let's hear it.

Number two, you have antiques and family heirlooms.

Family heirlooms is basically expensive things that can be passed down through generations.

Yes. So for example, the aristocracy, very, very posh people, they probably don't even really buy their own furniture because they've had the same furniture for centuries.

Yeah, every piece is a museum piece basically, I see that really, if you can have antiques, antiques not so much, but family heirloom antiques, then I would say you're posh, okay.

Number three, you have a wine cellar.

有酒窖. I mean, having lots of expensive wine is one thing, but having a wine cellar to keep them is a whole different thing.

Yeah. And you can see in like very expensive houses in London for example, they normally have their own wine cellar. Personally I don't have a wine cellar because I drink it too quickly.

I'm sure that's the reason.

Well yeah. Number four, you have paintings of your ancestors.

You have paintings of your ancestors and not your own doodling. No, 直接有你祖先的画像, 可能是professional painters. I see also those stately homes, those gigantic mansions, manor houses in the UK.

And you have paintings of your great great grandfather, great great great grandmother. That's a sign of you’re very posh.

I mean most common people, really their families can't even trace back that long ago.

Number five, you never discuss money.

I can kind of see that, it's like the old money rule, isn't it? 就是所谓的老钱，就是不屑于谈钱. They don't want to because talking about money every day is a new money thing.

Exactly. Number six, you call your parents ‘mummy and daddy’ when you're an adult.

If you like watching British drama, especially like period drama, you might have noticed this. 这个很有意思, 就是如果大家看英国的时代剧, 就能听到那种贵族的小姐或者少爷, 不管是多大年纪, 还叫他们的爸爸妈妈都是mommy, daddy或者papa.

To be honest, that's a bit the stereotype. I think even posh people wouldn't really do that anymore because that's too much a stereotype.

Oh, you don't know any posh people.

I know one or two. The next one is you have a family coat of arms.

Coat of arms. We need to explain. It's basically like a shield with a design, a family design on it. That's basically your family that represents your family, your ancestors.

So for example, for those of you who have seen a British passport that is the family coat of arms of the King or Queen.

比如说它的王室它都有coat of arms在欧洲其实被翻译成纹章,纹就是纹路的纹，章就是徽章的章.

在日本也有这个东西叫家纹, 在中国其实咱们原来也有叫做族徽, 基本上是这个概念. If you have family coat of arms, that means you are from a very prestigious family.

And you probably have it on your cutlery. You have on your plates. You have have it everywhere in your home.

On your servant’s uniform.

Exactly. Next one. You ride horses.

This I can kind of imagine because riding horses in China now is like an emerging thing among the upper middle class or the upper class. Because I mean riding horses is one thing, but keeping horses super expensive.

Very very expensive.

So if you ride horses and especially if you ride them well, then that means you grew up with horses and your family is loaded with money.

Exactly. Next one, your dinner parties are catered.

Your dinner party is catered. Catered means you have professional caterers, professional people who will come to your house, cook for you and plan everything when you are hosting a dinner party.

That's because you're so focused on being the host and being the hostess that you kind of give all of the food and drinks to someone else to manage.

I mean I've hired caterers.

Yeah, but again we've established you're not posh.

Thank you. I've hired chefs before actually.

So those at the top ten signs, if you tick every box or most of the boxes, chances are you're from a prestigious family, you'll be considered posh in the UK.