📖 Meaning
This idiom describes an unbroken chain of succession or inheritance, where traditions, culture, or lineage are passed down continuously from one generation to the next without interruption. It emphasizes the enduring and uninterrupted nature of transmission over time.
📜 Origin Story
The idiom first appears in Ming dynasty scholar Song Lian's 'Epitaph for Lord Wu' (《吴公墓碣铭》), where he writes that from that point onward, the family line continued unbroken without end. The classical reading of 绳 as 'mǐn' (rather than 'shéng') conveys the sense of ceaseless continuity. Later, the renowned scholar Liang Qichao employed this phrase in his overview of Chinese academic thought to describe how Chinese civilization endured and flourished through the ages.
💡 Example Usage
中华文明继继绳绳，绵延五千年而不绝。
Chinese civilization has been passed down continuously and unbroken, enduring for five thousand years without interruption.
🏷️ Category
➕ Similar Idioms
➖ Opposite Idioms
🔤 Quick Facts
- Chinese: 继继绳绳
- Pinyin: jì jì mǐn mǐn
- Literal Translation: continue, continue, unceasing, unceasing
- Category: Perseverance
- Characters: 4