弄堂

lòngtáng
noun #51,225

Meanings

  1. 1 (Shanghainese) lane
  2. 2 alley between rows of shikumen houses

Examples

Tā zài Shànghǎi de lòngtáng lǐ zhǎngdà.
She grew up in a Shanghai lane.
Lòngtáng lǐ chuánlái jiàomài shēng.
The cries of street vendors drift through the lane.

Tips

culture
The defining residential form of old Shanghai — narrow lanes lined with stone-gate townhouses, built from the late 19th century. The character is read nòng in most words but lòng specifically here; 弄堂 is essentially the Beijing 胡同's southern cousin.

In Pop Culture

长恨歌 Cháng hèn gē
The Song of Everlasting Sorrow (Wang Anyi, 1995)
Wang Anyi's Mao Dun Prize novel that turned the Shanghai 弄堂 into a national literary icon — the opening chapter is a lyrical aerial tour of the lanes themselves.

Stroke Order

nòng
táng