According to the "Oxford English Dictionary", "triad" is a translation of the Chinese term "Sān Hé Huì" 三合會 (or Triple Union Society), referring to the union of heaven, earth and humanity. Another theory posits that the word "triad" was coined by British officials in colonial Hong Kong as a reference to the triads' use of triangular imagery. It has been speculated that triad organizations took after, or were originally part of, revolutionary movements such as the White Lotus, the Taiping and Boxer Rebellions and the Heaven and Earth Society.