E.Y. Zhao asks > Is it ping pong or table tennis Re: Underspin , a novel

[DM Xin]

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Here she asks :- Table tennis or ping pong? Does it matter?
During copyediting I learned that an English company trademarked “Ping-Pong,” which has since been taken by an American company. That’s partly why we formally call the sport “table tennis.” But in Chinese it’s the onomatopoetic “ping-pong,” which is what I grew up calling it. Seeing how the Chinese dominate the sport, I’d say that makes “ping-pong” equally legitimate. So it doesn’t matter to me. If you’re addressing an Olympian, though, err toward table tennis.
What do you all think ? Do you agree that it does not matter if you are not an Olympian ?

[Spraig2]

The usage of the word "ping pong" matters a whole lot from the perspective of marketing and promoting the sport in places like North America.
In North America , it is NOT a sport but largely considered a 'silly' 'basement' "game" of ping pong and not a formal "athletic" (Olympic) "sport" of table tennis.

I realize it is not a fault of average far east Asian person (mostly Chinese, Japanese , Korean and to some extent places like Cambodia, Laos ,Vietnam , Philippines , Thailand, Malaysia & Singapore etc).

But the 100s of millions of dollars that China , Japan , Korea pour into the sport is in total vain because the image of the sport & all the great work they do , is negated by the stigma attached to the phrase "ping pong" in North America.

There had been efforts from the highest levels of the ITTF once in a while but rarely to fix this. One former president of ITTF , Lollo Hammarlund of Sweden , hated use of the phrase "ping pong" but ITTF went back to using it after him.

Unless and until ITTF corrects this problem in far east Asia first, there is no solution to what I consider to be a major hurdle in promoting the sport but it will take many decades to fix this issue.

[Ziaeo Mei]

It’s one of the sport’s great ironies: East Asian nations, especially China, have poured hundreds of millions into research, development, and global promotion of table tennis — elevating it to Olympic glory and national prestige. Yet, they continue to call it “ping pong,” a term that, in many Western contexts, evokes casual basement games and toy paddles. This linguistic disconnect isn’t due to neglect — in Mandarin, 乒乓球 (pīng pāng qiú) is the official name, and it carries no dismissive tone. But when that term crosses borders, it loses its gravitas. The result? A sport that commands elite respect at home is often misunderstood abroad. If global branding is the goal, then terminology matters. Calling it “table tennis” isn’t just semantics — it’s a statement

[Bloopck]

Using the term “ping pong” instead of “table tennis” often signals a lack of awareness about the sport’s true nature. In fact, try calling a recreation center in North America and ask when they host table tennis — you’ll likely be met with confusion. It might take two or three tries before someone finally responds, “Oh, you mean ping pong?” That moment says it all: the sport is globally recognized as table tennis, yet the casual nickname persists, obscuring its seriousness and competitive stature.
Referring to table tennis as ping pong may not be seen bad in far east Asia but it severely trivializes the sport in places like North America
Ping pong is a colloquial term that oversimplifies what table tennis really is