但愿人长久 (dàn yuàn rén cháng jiǔ): may we all live long and well —…

Meanings

1 may we all live long and well — a wish for the lasting well-being of loved ones, especially those far away
2 literally: only wish that people be long-lasting

Characters

但

Examples

中秋的月饼盒上常写着：但愿人长久，千里共婵娟。

Zhōng qiū de yuèbǐng hé shàng cháng xiě zhe: dànyuànrénchángjiǔ, qiānlǐgòngchánjuān.

Mid-Autumn mooncake boxes often bear the line: 'May we all live long, and share this fair moon across a thousand miles.'

爷爷生日那天，全家举杯：但愿人长久。

Yéye shēngrì nàtiān, quánjiā jǔbēi: dànyuànrénchángjiǔ.

On grandpa's birthday, the whole family raised their glasses: 'May you live long and well.'

Tips

history

From Su Shi's (苏轼) Song-dynasty ci 《水调歌头·明月几时有》, written on Mid-Autumn 1076 missing his brother Su Zhe. Closing couplet: 但愿人长久，千里共婵娟 — 'Only wish that we may live long, and together share this fair moon across a thousand miles.' 婵娟 (chánjuān) here poetically refers to the moon. Teresa Teng's (邓丽君) 1983 song 《但愿人长久》 cemented the phrase in the modern imagination.

usage

Paired couplet — almost always quoted with its mate 千里共婵娟. The go-to Mid-Autumn / family blessing; also appears on wedding stationery, birthday cards, and farewell toasts.

In Pop Culture

《但愿人长久》《 Dànyuànrénchángjiǔ 》

Wishing We Last Forever

1983 Teresa Teng song setting Su Shi's entire ci 《水调歌头》 to music, later covered by Faye Wong (王菲) — probably the single biggest reason the phrase is known by everyone in the Chinese-speaking world.