📖 Meaning
To divide up household property among family members when separating the family into independent households. It refers to the legal or customary process of splitting shared assets so each branch can live independently. The term is synonymous with '分烟析产'.
📜 Origin Story
The phrase appears in modern Chinese usage, notably cited in the Wenhui Daily (文汇报) on September 19, 1984, in a report by Zhou Shanteng describing how disputes over dividing family property frequently escalated into serious conflicts in society at the time. The term draws on older customs of household division (分家) combined with the formal accounting of assets (析产), a practice rooted in traditional Chinese family law where multi-generational households would formally split land, housing, and other wealth among sons. It reflects longstanding concerns in Chinese legal and social history about equitable inheritance and the prevention of family disputes.
💡 Example Usage
兄弟三人因分家析产闹上法庭，最后经调解才平息了纠纷。
The three brothers ended up in court over dividing the family property, and the dispute was only settled through mediation.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 分家析产
- Pinyin: fēn jiā xī chǎn
- Literal Translation: divide, family, analyze, property
- Category: Status
- Characters: 4