Listen to this articleChinese version: Speak of Cao Cao, and Cao Cao arrives.
shuō cáo cāo, cáo cāo dào
说曹操，曹操到
While ghosts and demons abound in Buddhist tradition and Chinese superstition, cáo cāo (曹操) was the historical figure chosen to represent the devil in this idiom.
A warlord during the Three Kingdoms period, cáo cāo (曹操) has been praised as a brilliant strategist and fair ruler, but Chinese opera also represented him as cunning and deceitful. This portrayal carried on into the literary epic, Romance of the Three Kingdoms.
This idiom arose out of the belief that cáo cāo (曹操) had many eyes and ears everywhere, and moved with unbelievable speed. You had to be careful when speaking ill about him.
Anytime you are enjoying some gossip and suddenly the subject of your conversation texts, calls, or announces her presence, you can verbalize this coincidence by saying, “shuō cáo cāo, cáo cāo dào (说曹操，曹操到)!”
It’s also interesting to note that the second half of the idiom is often omitted in English. Usually, you’ll often hear people say, “Speak of the devil.”
In Chinese, no one will ever say “shuō cáo cāo (说曹操)” and leave it at that. Don’t omit the second half of it like you would in English.
