麻雀 麻将 - The Game of the Sparrows

麻雀 was the original Chinese name for Mah-Jong. 麻将 is the name used by most Mandarin-speaking Chinese. Mah-Jong literally means "The game of the sparrows". When the Mah-Jong tiles are shuffled at the start of the game the clattering sound they make is known as the “twittering of the sparrows”. It's a sound often heard in the backstreets and alleyways of China.