Home is Where Your Pig Lives

Who says Chinese characters don't make sense? Consider the 'jia' which means 'home.' The character is written like this:

The upper part represents the roof of a house. The lower part represents a PIG, because no home ought to be without one. Traditionally, the pig was very important to China's agrarian economy, as cows are to ours. Even today, the pig is cherished as a symbol of happiness and good luck here, and pork is China's favorite meat. Last year was the "Year of the Pig," and people born in that year were considered exceptionally lucky.

The Chinese are baffled when they learn that in our culture, pigs symbolize greed and filth.