內卷

Chinese

		inside; inner; internal inside; inner; internal; within; interior	chapter; examination paper; to roll (up) chapter; examination paper; to roll (up); to sweep up; to carry on
trad. (內卷/內捲)		內	卷/捲
simp. (内卷)		内	卷

Etymology

Calque of English involution, from its Latin roots. This sense was coined in Agricultural Involution: The Processes of Ecological Change in Indonesia (1963) by Clifford Geertz, as an antonym of evolution, where Geertz observed Javanese and Balinese rice farmers failed to transit from labor-intensive farming to capital-intensive farming, but rather developing intensive competition that does not increase productivity.

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Pinyin): nèijuǎn

  (Zhuyin): ㄋㄟˋ ㄐㄩㄢˇ

• Cantonese (Jyutping): noi⁶ gyun²

---

• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: nèijuǎn
    • Zhuyin: ㄋㄟˋ ㄐㄩㄢˇ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: nèijyuǎn
    • Wade–Giles: nei⁴-chüan³
    • Yale: nèi-jywǎn
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: neyjeuan
    • Palladius: нэйцзюань (nɛjczjuanʹ)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /neɪ̯⁵¹ t͡ɕy̯ɛn²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾/
• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: noi⁶ gyun²
    • Yale: noih gyún
    • Cantonese Pinyin: noi⁶ gyn²
    • Guangdong Romanization: noi⁶ gün²
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /nɔːi̯²² kyːn³⁵/

Verb

內卷

1. (economics, social sciences, of a society or nation) to stop developing or progressing despite intense inner competition
2. (neologism, slang) to be in a state of increased competition for limited resources, requiring great effort to stay ahead
3. (neologism, slang) to study harder or work longer as a result of intense competition among peers
   • 2024, 鄧曦澤, “中國高校過度擴招與社會內卷化”, in Lianhe Zaobao‎^[1]:

     但現實是，大學生越來越多，好崗位又非常有限，大學生不得不降低預期，放下身段，被迫內卷。 [MSC, trad.]
     但现实是，大学生越来越多，好岗位又非常有限，大学生不得不降低预期，放下身段，被迫内卷。 [MSC, simp.]

     Dàn xiànshí shì, dàxuéshēng yuè lái yuè duō, hǎo gǎngwèi yòu fēicháng yǒuxiàn, dàxuéshēng bùdébù jiàngdī yùqī, fàngxià shēnduàn, bèipò nèijuǎn. [Pinyin]

     (please add an English translation of this usage example)

Derived terms

• 卷
• 卷王 (juǎnwáng)