Modern usage

The term was given new life in 1979 when late leader Deng Xiaoping used the concept of xiaokang to differentiate the Chinese path of development-the "four modernizations"-while discussing China's modernization with Japanese Prime Minister Masayoshi Ohira.

Deng told Ohira, "Our conceptualization of the 'four modernizations' is not like your conceptualization of modernization but is a xiaokang family."

Lomanov says that Deng's use of the term "was intended to help China to restore civilizational dialogue and understanding with more economically developed countries and territories of East Asia of that time".

He adds, "Deng found a very appropriate formulation that helped to rally Chinese society around the tasks of economic development and modernization … The transition from the idealistic impulses of the 1960s and 1970s to the realistic goals of reform and opening-up was not simple and easy."

Deng further elaborated on his concept in 1984, saying, "Xiaokang means that, by the end of this century, our per capita gross domestic product reaches $800."

The country's per capita GDP was about $250 in 1984, according to official data.

"This is the first time that the picture of xiaokang was accurate in history, and the goal impressed me," Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences researcher Ma Chi says.

"Eight-hundred dollars was a smart goal, carefully considered by authorities, which indicated that China aimed to become a middle-income country because, according to the Classification of Economies of the World Bank then, per capita GDP for middle-income countries ranged from $786 to $9,655."

Lomanov says: "Since the 1980s, Chinese leaders have been explaining xiaokang in quantitative terms that everyone can understand and set exact goals to increase people's incomes and also set the deadlines for achieving these goals.

"Deng managed to unite Chinese society and motivate individuals to participate in the modernization process. At the same time, the commitment to China's socialist path of development has not been lost."

This goal was achieved in 1997, far ahead of the stipulated timeline. Last year, China's GDP per capita exceeded $10,000.

"What seemed to the common man a desirable material goal at the beginning of the reforms-a watch, a bicycle, a sewing machine, a refrigerator and a television-have now become routine household items," Lomanov says.