While 13 is regarded as bad luck in the Western world, it is one of the lucky numbers in Eastern culture because “sap6 saam1” (13) sounds like “sat6 saang1” which means ‘sure to live’. Other numbers such as 2 “ji6” is the homophone of “easy”, thus is also appreciated in Chinese society. The most welcomed number is no doubt 8 “baat3” as it sounds similar to “faat3” , which means good fortune.

The unlucky number is 4 “sei3” since it has similar sound as the Chinese word for “death”. That’s why some buildings in Hong Kong do not have floors with the number of “4” at the first digit.