Together, 帖子 (tiězi) literally means “a notice-thing,” a perfect and intuitive term for a digital post that serves the same function as its paper predecessor.
The concept of a 帖子 (tiězi) is central to understanding Chinese internet culture, which was heavily shaped by BBS (Bulletin Board System) forums long before the rise of modern social media. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, forums like Tianya (天涯) and Mop (猫扑) were the epicenters of online life in China. They were sprawling digital cities where users would 发帖 (fā tiě)—create posts—on every topic imaginable, from celebrity gossip to political debate. The quality, humor, and depth of a 帖子 could make a user famous overnight. The person who creates the post is called the 楼主 (lóuzhǔ), literally “building master” or “landlord,” a term that vividly illustrates their ownership and control over the conversation thread they initiated. This is culturally distinct from the Western concept of a “post.” While functionally similar, the Chinese terminology and the community roles are more defined. The goal is often not just to post, but to “build a tall building” (盖高楼, gàigāolóu), meaning to create a post that gets a huge number of replies. This collectivist, community-building aspect is a hallmark of Chinese forum culture. A user might “bump” a post they like by replying 顶帖 (dǐng tiě), literally “to top the post,” to keep it visible on the front page, an act of community support. The entire ecosystem revolves around the life cycle of a 帖子.
While the dominance of classic forums has waned, the term 帖子 (tiězi) and its associated vocabulary remain essential across the modern Chinese internet.