無信不立

See also: 无信不立

Chinese

		not have	letter; true; to believe letter; true; to believe; sign; evidence	not; no	set up; to stand
trad. (無信不立)		無	信	不	立
simp. (无信不立)		无	信	不	立

Etymology

From the Analects:

子貢問「政」。子曰：「足食，足兵，民信之矣。」子貢曰：「必不得已而去，於斯三者何先？」曰：「去兵。」子貢曰：「必不得已而去，於斯二者何先？」曰：「去食。自古皆有死，民無信不立。」 [Classical Chinese, trad.]

子贡问「政」。子曰：「足食，足兵，民信之矣。」子贡曰：「必不得已而去，于斯三者何先？」曰：「去兵。」子贡曰：「必不得已而去，于斯二者何先？」曰：「去食。自古皆有死，民无信不立。」 [Classical Chinese, simp.]

From: The Analects of Confucius, c. 475 – 221 BCE, translated based on James Legge's version

Zǐgòng wèn “zhèng”. Zǐ yuē: “Zúshí, zúbīng, mín xìn zhī yǐ.” Zǐgòng yuē: “Bì bùdéyǐ ér qù, yú sī sān zhě hé xiān?” Yuē: “Qù bīng.” Zǐgòng yuē: “Bì bùdéyǐ ér qù, yú sī èr zhě hé xiān?” Yuē: “Qù shí. Zìgǔ jiē yǒu sǐ, mín wúxìnbùlì.” [Pinyin]

Zigong asked about government. The Master said, "The requisites of government are that there be sufficiency of food, sufficiency of military equipment, and the confidence of the people in their ruler." Zigong said, "If it cannot be helped, and one of these must be dispensed with, which of the three should be foregone first?" "The military equipment," said the Master. Zigong again asked, "If it cannot be helped, and one of the remaining two must be dispensed with, which of them should be foregone?" The Master answered, "Part with the food. From of old, death has been the lot of all men; but if the people have no faith in their rulers, there is no standing for the state."

Romance of the Three Kingdoms:

自古皆有死，人無信不立 [Written Vernacular Chinese, trad.]

自古皆有死，人无信不立 [Written Vernacular Chinese, simp.]

From: Romance of the Three Kingdoms, circa 14^th century CE

zìgǔ jiē yǒu sǐ, rén wúxìnbùlì [Pinyin]

From of old, death has been the lot of all men; but if people have no faith in a person, there is no standing for that person.

Pronunciation

Mandarin
(Pinyin): wúxìnbùlì

(Zhuyin): ㄨˊ ㄒㄧㄣˋ ㄅㄨˋ ㄌㄧˋ
Cantonese (Jyutping): mou⁴ seon³ bat¹ lap⁶ / mou⁴ seon³ bat¹ laap⁶

Mandarin
- (Standard Chinese)⁺
  - Hanyu Pinyin: wúxìnbùlì [Phonetic: wúxìnbúlì]
  - Zhuyin: ㄨˊ ㄒㄧㄣˋ ㄅㄨˋ ㄌㄧˋ
  - Tongyong Pinyin: wúsìnbùlì
  - Wade–Giles: wu²-hsin⁴-pu⁴-li⁴
  - Yale: wú-syìn-bù-lì
  - Gwoyeu Romatzyh: wushinnbulih
  - Palladius: усиньбули (usinʹbuli)
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /u³⁵ ɕin⁵¹ pu⁵¹⁻³⁵ li⁵¹/
Cantonese
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
  - Jyutping: mou⁴ seon³ bat¹ lap⁶ / mou⁴ seon³ bat¹ laap⁶
  - Yale: mòuh seun bāt lahp / mòuh seun bāt laahp
  - Cantonese Pinyin: mou⁴ soen³ bat⁷ lap⁹ / mou⁴ soen³ bat⁷ laap⁹
  - Guangdong Romanization: mou⁴ sên³ bed¹ leb⁶ / mou⁴ sên³ bed¹ lab⁶
  - Sinological IPA ^(key): /mou̯²¹ sɵn³³ pɐt̚⁵ lɐp̚²/, /mou̯²¹ sɵn³³ pɐt̚⁵ laːp̚²/

Proverb

無信不立

If people have no faith in a person, there is no standing for that person.

Related terms

自古皆有死，民無信不立／自古皆有死，民无信不立 (zìgǔ jiē yǒu sǐ, mín wúxìnbùlì)
自古皆有死，人無信不立／自古皆有死，人无信不立 (zìgǔ jiē yǒu sǐ, rén wúxìnbùlì)