---
title: "3 Dictionary Quotes By China Miéville"
description: "3 Dictionary quotes by China Miéville. Plus more from China Miéville and more Dictionary sayings from other authors."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/123/china-mi-ville-1303_beautiful_my-parents-were-hippies-and-the-story-is_269853.png"
---

> [My parents were hippies, and the story is that they went through a dictionary looking for a beautiful word to name me.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/china-mi-ville/my-parents-were-hippies-and-the-story-is-that-they-went-through-a/)

[China Mieville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/china-mi-ville/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/123/china-mi-ville-1303_beautiful_my-parents-were-hippies-and-the-story-is_269853.png)

> [My parents went through the dictionary looking for a beautiful name, nearly called me Banyan, flicked on a few pages and came…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/china-mi-ville/my-parents-went-through-the-dictionary-looking-for-a-beautiful-name/)

[China Mieville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/china-mi-ville/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2aa/china-mi-ville-1303_beautiful_my-parents-went-through-the-dictionary-l_726780.jpg)

> [“I certainly didn't mind possibly sending the reader to a dictionary once in a while, but I tried not to do it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/china-mi-ville/i-certainly-didn-t-mind-possibly-sending-the-reader-to-a-dictionary/)

[China Miéville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/china-mi-ville/)

[Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cd0/china-mi-ville-1303_books_i-certainly-didn-t-mind-possibly-sending_2085872.png)

## Other authors on Dictionary

- [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b003/author-alice-childress-11455.jpg) Kory Stamper 11 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dictionary/kory-stamper/)
- [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b004/author-ambrose-bierce-12239.jpg) Ambrose Bierce 8 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dictionary/ambrose-bierce/)
- [ ![](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/uploads/sms4s/authors/processed/b009/author-erin-mckean-33737.jpg) Erin McKean 7 quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dictionary/erin-mckean/)
- [Shion Miura 5 quotes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dictionary/shion-miura/)

## More by China Miéville

> [“I just can't get with this idea that literature is a 12-step program. If someone wants to read a book to see good people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/china-mi-ville/i-just-can-t-get-with-this-idea-that-literature-is-a-12-step-program/)

[China Miéville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/china-mi-ville/)

> [“Houses built on bridges are scandals. A bridge wants to not be. If it could choose its shape, a bridge would be no shape,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/china-mi-ville/houses-built-on-bridges-are-scandals-a-bridge-wants-to-not-be-if-it/)

[China Miéville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/china-mi-ville/)

> [Remember the movements that don't look like moving.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/china-mi-ville/remember-the-movements-that-don-t-look-like-moving/)

[China Mieville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/china-mi-ville/)

> [“Either way, it is a curio of the moment that hard-left advocates of ‘all power to the soviets’ were delegated by a soviet opponent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/china-mi-ville/either-way-it-is-a-curio-of-the-moment-that-hard-left-advocates-of/)

[China Miéville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/china-mi-ville/)

> [It felt like being a child again, though it was not. Being a child is like nothing. It's only being. Later, when we think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/china-mi-ville/it-felt-like-being-a-child-again-though-it-was-not-being-a-child-is/)

[China Mieville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/china-mi-ville/)

> [“We have to establish our credentials as an explorocracy; so to survive and rule ourselves, we have to explore.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/china-mi-ville/we-have-to-establish-our-credentials-as-an-explorocracy-so-to-survive/)

[China Miéville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/china-mi-ville/)

> [“So long as it fated, fate didn’t care what it fated.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/china-mi-ville/so-long-as-it-fated-fate-didn-t-care-what-it-fated/)

[China Miéville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/china-mi-ville/)

> [“Everything's fit to be worshipped.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/china-mi-ville/everything-s-fit-to-be-worshipped/)

[China Miéville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/china-mi-ville/)

> [“Death isn't what it used to be”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/china-mi-ville/death-isn-t-what-it-used-to-be/)

[China Miéville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/china-mi-ville/)

> [“almanacs, or what was left of them when those pages making incorrect predictions and offering unhelpful advice had been torn out.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/china-mi-ville/almanacs-or-what-was-left-of-them-when-those-pages-making-incorrect/)

[China Miéville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/china-mi-ville/)

> [“There are no telepaths in this universe, I think, but there are empathics, with languages so silent that they may as well be sharing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/china-mi-ville/there-are-no-telepaths-in-this-universe-i-think-but-there-are/)

[China Miéville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/china-mi-ville/)

> [“The poets and artists and philosophers, resistance activists, secret scouts and troublemakers, had become, as they must, soldiers.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/china-mi-ville/the-poets-and-artists-and-philosophers-resistance-activists-secret/)

[China Miéville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/china-mi-ville/)

> [“The city’s a heart, I said, and in that a heart and a city were sutured into a third thing, a heartish city, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/china-mi-ville/the-city-s-a-heart-i-said-and-in-that-a-heart-and-a-city-were-sutured/)

[China Miéville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/china-mi-ville/)

> [“As he got older, Billy suspected, he would, Dicaprio-like, simply become like an increasingly wizened child.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/china-mi-ville/as-he-got-older-billy-suspected-he-would-dicaprio-like-simply-become/)

[China Miéville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/china-mi-ville/)

> [Scars are memory. Like sutures. They stitch the past to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/china-mi-ville/scars-are-memory-like-sutures-they-stitch-the-past-to-me/)

[China Mieville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/china-mi-ville/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "ItemList",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dictionary/china-mi-ville/#itemlist",
            "name": "3 Dictionary Quotes By China Miéville",
            "numberOfItems": 3,
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "item": {
                        "@type": "Quotation",
                        "text": "My parents were hippies, and the story is that they went through a dictionary looking for a beautiful word to name me. They nearly called me Banyan, but flipped a few pages on and reached \"China,\" thankfully. The other reason they liked it is that \"china\" is Cockney rhyming slang for \"mate.\" People say \"my old china,\" meaning \"my old mate,\" because \"china plate\" rhymes with \"mate.",
                        "creator": {
                            "@type": "Person",
                            "name": "China Miéville"
                        },
                        "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/china-mi-ville/my-parents-were-hippies-and-the-story-is-that-they-went-through-a/",
                        "image": {
                            "@type": "ImageObject",
                            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/123/china-mi-ville-1303_beautiful_my-parents-were-hippies-and-the-story-is_269853.png",
                            "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/123/china-mi-ville-1303_beautiful_my-parents-were-hippies-and-the-story-is_269853.png",
                            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/123/china-mi-ville-1303_beautiful_my-parents-were-hippies-and-the-story-is_269853.png",
                            "width": 1080,
                            "height": 1080,
                            "caption": "“My parents were hippies, and the story is that they went through a dictionary looking for a beautiful word…” — China Mieville",
                            "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                            "creator": {
                                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                            }
                        }
                    }
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "item": {
                        "@type": "Quotation",
                        "text": "My parents went through the dictionary looking for a beautiful name, nearly called me Banyan, flicked on a few pages and came to China, which is cockney rhyming slang for mate.",
                        "creator": {
                            "@type": "Person",
                            "name": "China Miéville"
                        },
                        "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/china-mi-ville/my-parents-went-through-the-dictionary-looking-for-a-beautiful-name/",
                        "image": {
                            "@type": "ImageObject",
                            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2aa/china-mi-ville-1303_beautiful_my-parents-went-through-the-dictionary-l_726780.jpg",
                            "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2aa/china-mi-ville-1303_beautiful_my-parents-went-through-the-dictionary-l_726780.jpg",
                            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2aa/china-mi-ville-1303_beautiful_my-parents-went-through-the-dictionary-l_726780.jpg",
                            "width": 1080,
                            "height": 1080,
                            "caption": "“My parents went through the dictionary looking for a beautiful name, nearly called me Banyan, flicked on a…” — China Mieville",
                            "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                            "creator": {
                                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                            }
                        }
                    }
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "item": {
                        "@type": "Quotation",
                        "text": "“I certainly didn't mind possibly sending the reader to a dictionary once in a while, but I tried not to do it too often.”",
                        "creator": {
                            "@type": "Person",
                            "name": "China Miéville"
                        },
                        "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/china-mi-ville/i-certainly-didn-t-mind-possibly-sending-the-reader-to-a-dictionary/",
                        "image": {
                            "@type": "ImageObject",
                            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cd0/china-mi-ville-1303_books_i-certainly-didn-t-mind-possibly-sending_2085872.png",
                            "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cd0/china-mi-ville-1303_books_i-certainly-didn-t-mind-possibly-sending_2085872.png",
                            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cd0/china-mi-ville-1303_books_i-certainly-didn-t-mind-possibly-sending_2085872.png",
                            "width": 1080,
                            "height": 1080,
                            "caption": "“I certainly didn't mind possibly sending the reader to a dictionary once in a while, but I tried not to do…” — China Miéville",
                            "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                            "creator": {
                                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                            }
                        }
                    }
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "@type": "CollectionPage",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dictionary/china-mi-ville/#webpage",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dictionary/china-mi-ville/",
            "name": "Dictionary Quotes by China Miéville",
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "mainEntity": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dictionary/china-mi-ville/#itemlist"
            },
            "primaryImageOfPage": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/123/china-mi-ville-1303_beautiful_my-parents-were-hippies-and-the-story-is_269853.png"
            },
            "description": "3 Dictionary quotes by China Miéville. Plus more from China Miéville and more Dictionary sayings from other authors.",
            "breadcrumb": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dictionary/china-mi-ville/#breadcrumb"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dictionary/china-mi-ville/#breadcrumb",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Topics",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/categories/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Dictionary",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dictionary/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 5,
                    "name": "China Miéville",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dictionary/china-mi-ville/"
                }
            ]
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```