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Flying Pigeon (; Pinyin: ''fēigē'') is a Chinese bicycle company based in Tianjin, a direct-controlled municipality, in Northeastern China. Some 500 million units were made as of 2007 making it one of the most popular vehicles sold. ==History== In 1936, a Japanese businessman built the Changho Works factory in Tianjin, and started to make "Anchor" bicycles. The brand name was changed to "Victory", and then renamed to "Zhongzi". After the Communists led by Mao Zedong came to power in 1949, the bicycle industry was revived. In April 1949, Chairman Mao's heir apparent, vice president Liu Shaoqi paid a visit to the factory and commanded that it become the first bicycle manufacturer in New China. Their workers were tasked to build a generation of strong, durable, light, and beautiful bicycles for the New China. On July 5, 1950, the first Flying Pigeon bicycle was produced. It was the brainchild of a worker named Huo Baoji, who based his classic model on the 1932 English Raleigh roadster.〔( www.flying-pigeon.eu ) HISTORY – FLYING PIGEON BICICLE CO., LTD. - Retrieved 2013-04-29〕 The "Flying Pigeon" name was intended as an expression of peace during the war in Korea. The current logo is a stylized dove, representing concord and harmony, resting on the initials FG. Previous logos have depicted the dove in flight.〔(Flying Pigeon bicycle old photos ), (money.163.com ) Retrieved 2014-01-19〕 The Flying Pigeon was at the forefront of the bicycle phenomenon in the People’s Republic of China. The vehicle was the government approved form of transport, and the nation became known as ''zixingche wang guo'', the Kingdom of Bicycles. A bicycle was regarded as one of the three "must-haves" of every citizen, alongside a sewing machine and watch - essential items in life that also offered a hint of wealth. The Flying Pigeon bicycle became a symbol of an egalitarian social system that promised little comfort but a reliable ride through life. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, the logo became synonymous with almost all bicycles in the country. The Flying Pigeon became the single most popular mechanized vehicle on the planet, becoming so ubiquitous that Deng Xiaoping — the post-Mao leader who launched China's economic reforms in the 1970s — defined prosperity as "a Flying Pigeon in every household". In the early 1980s, Flying Pigeon was the country's biggest bike manufacturer, selling 3 million cycles in 1986. Its 20-kilo black single-speed models were popular with workers, and there was a waiting list of several years to get one, and even then buyers needed good ''guanxi'' (connections) in addition to the purchase cost, which was about four months' wages for most workers.〔(A Phoenix Named Flying Pigeon - Businessweek )〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Flying Pigeon」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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