‘秩俸’ (zhì fèng) is a classical and formal term referring to the official stipend or salary assigned to government officials according to their bureaucratic rank (‘秩’, zhì, meaning ‘rank’ or ‘grade’) and service position. The character ‘秩’ denotes hierarchical order or official grade in traditional Chinese administrative systems, while ‘俸’ specifically means ‘official salary’ or ‘stipend’. Together, they emphasize that compensation was not uniform but strictly tied to one’s rank within the civil service hierarchy.

This term appears almost exclusively in historical, academic, or literary contexts—especially when discussing imperial China’s bureaucratic system (e.g., Han, Tang, or Qing dynasties). It is rarely used in modern spoken or written Mandarin; today’s standard term for salary is 工资 (gōngzī) or 薪水 (xīnshuǐ). ‘秩俸’ carries strong connotations of institutional formality, historical authenticity, and Confucian administrative ideals.