| Zhing-zhong | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Traditional Chinese | 精裝[citation needed] | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 精装[citation needed] | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Literal meaning | deluxe | ||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||
Zhing-zhong (simplified Chinese:精装;traditional Chinese:精裝;pinyin:jīngzhuāng)[citation needed] is aZimbabweanslang word meaning low cost Asian (mostly Chinese) consumer products of poor quality.[1][self-published source?][unreliable source?]
The word gained traction in Zimbabwe during the 2000s when aninflux of Chinese merchants and storekeepers imported consumer products into Zimbabwe.[2]
The term carries strong connotations of widespread discontent over the continued de-industrialisation of Zimbabwe, and the replacement of its products with Chinese ones. In some quarters, "zhing-zhong" or simply "zhing" is a slur for the Chinese. Perhaps mindful of this, theGovernment of Zimbabwe is reported to have banned the word.[citation needed] The word "zhing-zhong", according to Thulani Chikanda, refers to products from China even if they are of high quality, it is not about being cheap but about the origin. Chikanda also argues that this word was merely a petition to the government to tell China to improve quality on products.[3]
