So I’m a gangster now

Recently I was sharing stories with a local acquaintance, and she asked to see a photo of my scooter.“Whaaaa!” she exclaimed, as I found one on my phone.“You’re a bā jiā jiǔ! [Pause…] Do you know bā jiā jiǔ?”Indeed, I do know bā jiā jiǔ. But I was surprised she said that. Because bā jiā jiǔ is Taiwanese slang for “gangster”…8+9In Mandarin Chinese:Eight is pronounced bāPlus is pronounced jiāNine is pronounced jiǔSo bā jiā jiǔ literally means “8+9”. But how does it also mean “gangster”?The term comes from the similar-sounding phrase Bā Jiā Jiàng (八家將), which directly translates to “Eight Generals”.These are traditional religious performance troupes that wear elaborate face paint and armor-like costumes.Here’s a (copyright-free) photo of some of them:Source: Wikimedia Commons.Over time, the Eight Generals have become associated with Taiwanese criminal gangs. This is because, counter-intuitively, gangs often get involved with temples to enhance their social capital. And temple-based…