Chinese names
Chinese surnames originated in matrilineal clan society. At that time, people formed clans with their mother as the center. In order to distinguish each other, they used surnames as The title of the clan.
The origin of surnames may be from the following situations: 1. In matrilineal clan society, the surname is named after the mother. Therefore, many ancient surnames have the word "女" next to them, such as Jiang, Yao, and Ji. Etc., even the word "surname" itself is composed of the words "female" and "生". 2. The surname is based on the creatures that people worshiped in ancient times, such as horses, cows, sheep, dragons, etc. 3. Take the ancestral country as the surname, such as Zhao, Song, Qin, Wu, etc. 4. Taking the official positions of ancestors as surnames, such as Sima, Situ and other ancient official positions, became the surnames of future generations. 5. Use the ancestral title as the surname, such as Wang, Hou, etc. 6. The surname is based on the location and scenery of the place of residence, such as Dongguo, Ximen, Chi, Liu, etc. 7. Taking the occupation as the surname, for example, a person who makes pottery is named Tao. 8. Use the name of an ancestor as a surname. For example, the ancestor of the Chinese people, the Yellow Emperor, was named Xuanyuan. Later, Xuanyuan became a surname.
Chinese surnames have one character, two characters, or more than two characters. A surname with one character is a single surname, and a surname with two or more characters is a compound surname. There are still no accurate statistics on how many surnames there are in China. During the Song Dynasty, a scholar wrote a book called "Hundred Family Surnames", which contained more than 500 surnames, 60 of which were compound surnames. According to some statistics, there are more than 5,000 Chinese surnames that have appeared in Chinese literature, but now only more than 200 are common. Zhang, Wang, Li, Zhao, Liu, etc. are the most common single surnames in China, and Zhuge, Ouyang, Situ, Sima, etc. are the most common compound surnames in China.
Chinese names also have their own traditions and characteristics. Chinese names always have the surname first and the given name last. There are names with one character and names with two characters. The names of people in the same family should be arranged according to generation. The names of people of the same generation often have the same character. The names of ancient people were more complicated than those of modern people. In addition to the surname and given name, people with culture and status also had prefixes and nicknames. For example: Su Shi, a writer in the Song Dynasty, had a surname of Su, a given name of Shi, a courtesy name of Zizhan, and a nickname of Dongpo. Li Bai, a poet of the Tang Dynasty, lived in Qinglian Township, Sichuan when he was a child. He nicknamed himself "Qinglian layman".
Chinese names often have certain meanings and express certain wishes. Some names contain the place, time or natural phenomenon when they were born, such as "京", "morning", "winter", "snow", etc. Some names express the hope of possessing certain virtues, such as "loyalty", "righteousness", "propriety", "faithfulness", etc. Some names have the meaning of wishing for health, longevity and happiness, such as "Jian", "Shou", "Song", "Fu", etc. Men's names are also different from women's names. Men's names mostly use words that express might and bravery, such as "tiger", "dragon", "xiong", "wei", "strong", "strong", etc. Women's names often use words that express gentleness and beauty, such as "wind", "flower", "jade", "cai", "juan", "jing", etc.
Nowadays, Chinese people are no longer as particular about naming as the ancients. Most people only have a nickname and a famous name, and the names are not necessarily arranged according to generation.
Chinese Tea
Chinese people like to drink tea and often use it to entertain friends and guests. Tea is a necessity in Chinese people's lives.
The tea tree is native to China. After the ancient Chinese discovered the tea tree, they first used tea leaves for medicinal purposes and later as beverages. As early as 2,000 years ago, the Chinese had the habit of drinking tea, and later gradually learned the technology of cultivating tea trees and making tea. China is the hometown of tea.
Chinese tea is divided into several categories according to the production methods: green tea, black tea, oolong tea, scented tea, Tuo tea, brick tea, etc., and various types of tea include many varieties.
Green tea is bright green and does not undergo fermentation. Famous green tea varieties include Hangzhou West Lake Longjing tea, Jiangsu Biluochun tea, Anhui Huangshan Maofeng tea and Lu'an Guapian tea produced in Lu'an County, Anhui.
Black tea is fermented tea, and the brewed tea is red in color. Famous black teas in China include Qihong tea from Anhui and Dian black tea from Yunnan.
Oolong tea is a semi-fermented tea with loose and thick leaves and golden color. The best oolong tea is Wuyi rock tea produced in Wuyi Mountain, Fujian.
Scented tea is a unique type of tea in China. It is smoked by adding fragrant flowers to tea leaves. The most famous scented tea is jasmine tea produced in Fujian.
Tuocha is a kind of tea produced in Yunnan and Sichuan. It is pressed and shaped like a round steamed bun.
Brick tea, shaped like a brick, is a favorite tea of ??Mongolian, Tibetan and other ethnic minorities.
Drinking tea can not only quench thirst, but also eliminate fatigue, help digestion, and prevent some diseases. Long-term tea drinking is very beneficial to people's health.
A long time ago, China passed on its tea growing experience and tea tree seeds to people all over the world. Tea has become the most consumed beverage in the world and is deeply loved by people.
Twelve Zodiac Signs
There is a traditional custom among Chinese people that when a person is born, there is an animal as his zodiac sign. Zodiac signs, also called "zodiac signs", are the traditional Chinese folk method of counting years and calculating age.
According to the world-wide Gregorian calendar, just say a certain year in the Gregorian calendar, such as: 2002 AD. But the Chinese lunar calendar is different from this. The ancient Chinese invented the method of counting years using "stems and branches". "Qian" is "Heavenly Stem", which consists of 10 characters. These 10 characters are: A, B, B, D, Wu, Ji, Geng, Xin, Ren and Gui. "Zhi" is "earth branch" and consists of 12 characters. These 12 characters are: Zi, Chou, Yin, Mao, Chen, Si, Wu, Wei, Shen, You, Xu and Hai. Combining the 10 characters of the Heavenly Stems and the 12 characters of the Earthly Branches in order can form 60 pairs of chronological symbols, such as: Jiazi, Yichou, Bingyin... These 60 pairs of symbols are used over and over again, and every year there are A chronological symbol. For example, 2001 in the Gregorian calendar is the Xinsi year in the lunar calendar. The year 2002 in the Gregorian calendar is the Renwu year in the lunar calendar. Later, people used 12 animals including rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, sheep, monkey, chicken, dog and pig to match the twelve earthly branches, forming the twelve zodiac signs, also called the twelve zodiac signs. These are: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Rooster, Dog and Pig. In this way, the Year of Zi is the Year of Rat, the Year of Chou is the Year of Ox, and the Year of Yin is the Year of Tiger... Therefore, when a person is born, he will have an animal as his zodiac sign. Those born in the Year of Zi are Rat, those born in the Year of Chou are Ox, those born in the Year of Yin are Tiger... 2002 is the year of Renwu in the lunar calendar, which is the Year of the Horse. Children born in this year should be born in the Year of the Horse.
Nowadays, while Chinese people use the Gregorian calendar to date and calculate their age, they are still accustomed to using their zodiac animals to date and calculate their age. As long as people know a person's approximate age and his zodiac sign, they can calculate his exact age and year of birth.
Auspicious patterns
Among the Chinese people, there are many patterns with auspicious meanings. Every new year or festive day, people like to decorate their rooms and objects with these auspicious patterns to express their yearning for a happy life and celebrate good times and festivals.
China's auspicious patterns began in the Zhou Dynasty more than 3,000 years ago, and later spread among the people. Today, auspicious patterns are still an indispensable part of the lives of Zhongtong people.
China’s auspicious patterns are extremely extensive. Here are some of the most common ones:
The word "Double Happiness" means double happiness and good fortune. Folks often use it when celebrating happy events. use.
The prefix of the word "Shou" has been processed and beautified into a symmetrical pattern, which means longevity.
"Full Luck and Longevity" is a pattern composed of bat and longevity. "Bat" has the same pronunciation as "福", which means happiness and longevity.
The symmetrical pattern composed of two characters "you" means: there is something in the right direction and there is also something in the reverse direction. In rural areas of China, they are often attached to grain storage utensils to represent a good harvest and prosperity.
"Ruyi head" symbolizes success and success.
"Baiji" is also called "Panchang". It has no head or tail, no beginning and no end. It can be imagined as many "knots", which sounds like "baiji". As a symbol of good luck and good luck, it also means longevity and endless longevity.
"Sihe Ruyi", four Ruyi are surrounded and connected from all sides, symbolizing that everything goes well.
Qingming Festival
Qingming Festival is one of the twenty-four solar terms in China and an ancient traditional festival in China. Qingming Festival falls in the third month of the lunar calendar (around April 5th in the Gregorian calendar). This is the season when spring is bright and the air is clean. Therefore, this festival is called "Qingming Festival".
During the Qingming Festival, people have the custom of sweeping tombs to worship ancestors and going outing to plant willow trees.
Chinese people have the traditional virtue of respecting the elderly, and they cherish and revere their deceased ancestors even more. Therefore, every Tomb Sweeping Day, every household has to go to the countryside to pay homage to their ancestors' graves. People remove weeds from the graves, add new soil, light incense and place food and paper money in front of the graves to express their longing for and respect for their ancestors. This is called visiting the grave, also called tomb sweeping.
During the Qingming Festival, the grass in the mountains sprouts, the willow trees by the river grow leaves, and there is fresh green everywhere. It is a good time for outdoor play. The ancients had the custom of going for a walk in the countryside, which was called "outing"; they also had the custom of breaking off a willow branch and wearing it on the head, which was called "inserting willows." It is said that planting willow branches can drive away ghosts and disasters, so people wear willow branches one after another to pray for peace and happiness.
Nowadays, funeral methods have changed a lot. After cremation was introduced and burial was abolished, there were fewer and fewer graves in the fields. However, it is a traditional Chinese custom to worship ancestors and go on an outing during Qingming Festival. On this day, people still remember their ancestors in various ways. They also go to the countryside to breathe fresh air and enjoy the blue sky, green trees, and small trees. Grass and flowers.
Dragon Boat Festival
The fifth day of the fifth lunar month is the traditional Chinese folk Dragon Boat Festival, also called the "May Festival". During the Dragon Boat Festival, people eat rice dumplings and race dragon boats. It is said that these activities are held to commemorate Qu Yuan, the great patriotic poet in ancient China.
Qu Yuan was a native of Chu during the Warring States Period. During the Warring States Period, among the seven kingdoms of Qi, Chu, Yan, Han, Zhao, Wei, and Qin, Qin was the strongest and always wanted to annex the other six countries and dominate the world. Qu Yuan was a very talented official in the State of Chu. He advocated reforming the politics of Chu State, uniting other countries, and resisting Qin together. However, Qu Yuan's idea was opposed by bad people. The King of Chu listened to the words of these bad guys. Not only did he not adopt Qu Yuan's ideas, he also drove him out of the Chu capital. After Qu Yuan left the capital, he was still concerned about the fate of his motherland. Later, when he heard the news that Chu was defeated by Qin, he was very sad and felt that he had no power to save his motherland, so he jumped into the Miluo River and committed suicide. This day is the fifth day of the fifth lunar month in 278 BC.
After people heard the news that Qu Yuan jumped into the river, they all rowed boats to salvage his body, but they never found it. In order to prevent the fish and shrimp from eating Qu Yuan's body, the people put food into the river to feed the fish. From now on, people will do this on the fifth day of May every year. Over time, people changed to using reed leaves to wrap glutinous rice into rice dumplings and put them into the river. then. This formed the custom of eating rice dumplings and racing dragon boats during the Dragon Boat Festival.
Mid-Autumn Festival
The Mid-Autumn Festival falls on the 15th day of the eighth lunar month. It is a traditional Chinese festival.
According to the Chinese calendar, the third month of the lunar calendar is autumn. August is the middle month of autumn, and August 15th is the middle day of August, so this festival is called "Mid-Autumn Festival". On the Mid-Autumn Festival, Chinese people have the custom of admiring the moon and eating moon cakes.
In autumn, the weather is clear and cool, there are few clouds in the sky, and the moon in the night sky looks particularly bright. The night of August 15th is the night of the full moon, which has become the best time for people to appreciate the moon. People regard the full moon as a symbol of happy reunion, so the Mid-Autumn Festival is also called the "Reunion Festival".
According to traditional customs, when Chinese people admire the moon, they also put out fruits, moon cakes and other foods and eat them while admiring the moon. Because mooncakes are round and symbolize reunion, they are also called "reunion cakes" in some places. There are many varieties of Chinese mooncakes, and the preparation methods vary from place to place. Mooncake fillings can be sweet, salty, meaty or vegetarian, and there are various patterns and words on the mooncakes, which are really beautiful and delicious.
In autumn, people’s year’s work pays off. On the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, the whole family sat together to admire the moon and eat moon cakes, filled with the joy of harvest and reunion. At this time, people who are far away from home will also look up at the bright moon and miss their hometown and relatives. Because the full moon symbolizes happiness and reunion.
Since ancient times, China has had many myths and legends about the moon, the most famous of which is "Chang'e flying to the moon". Chang'e is the wife of Hou Yi in ancient Chinese myths and legends. It is said that she secretly ate the elixir of immortality obtained from the Queen Mother of the West, became an immortal, and flew to the Moon Palace.
Double Ninth Festival
The ninth day of the ninth lunar month is the Double Ninth Festival. This is a very ancient festival with a history of more than 1,700 years.
In Chinese numerals, one, three, five, seven, and nine are yang numbers, and two, four, six, and eight are yin numbers. Therefore, the ninth day of September is called the Double Ninth Festival or the Double Ninth Festival. In ancient China, the Double Ninth Festival was an important festival. Various activities were held on this day, such as climbing mountains, admiring chrysanthemums, planting dogwoods, eating Double Ninth Cake, etc.
Climbing high is the main custom of the Double Ninth Festival. The ancients believed that on the Double Ninth Festival, climbing high can avoid disasters. Later, climbing mountains during the Double Ninth Festival gradually evolved into a sports and tourism activity for people to relax and exercise.
Planting dogwood and admiring chrysanthemums are also traditional customs of the Double Ninth Festival. Cornus officinalis is a plant with edible fruits and medicinal stems and leaves. Chrysanthemums bloom in September and are known as the "longevity flower". In order to avoid the plague and drive away evil spirits, on the Double Ninth Festival, people wear dogwoods and chrysanthemums on their bodies, watch the chrysanthemums, and drink chrysanthemum tea and chrysanthemum wine.
Double Ninth Cake is a food made of flour. You can add dates, ginkgo, pine nuts, and almonds to make it sweet, or you can add meat to make it salty. If you are particular about it, it should be made into nine layers. Then make two lambs on top to harmonize with the sound of "Double Ninth Festival (sheep)".
Nowadays, during the Double Ninth Festival, customs such as planting dogwood are no longer seen, but many people still climb high to admire the chrysanthemums and enjoy the beautiful scenery of autumn on this day. In recent years, this ancient festival has added new content and become the annual "Respect for the Aged Day". Whenever the festival approaches, people hold various activities to respect the elderly and wish them good health and longevity.
Spring Festival
Every year on the first day of the first lunar month, it is the Chinese New Year. Among Chinese traditional festivals, this is the most important and lively festival. Because the Lunar New Year is celebrated at the end of winter and the beginning of spring, people also call this festival "Spring Festival".
Chinese people have many traditional customs during the Spring Festival. Starting from the 23rd of the twelfth lunar month, people begin to prepare for the New Year. During this period, every household has to do a general cleaning, buy New Year's goods, put up window grilles, hang New Year pictures, write Spring Festival couplets, steam rice cakes, prepare various foods, and prepare to bid farewell to the old year and welcome the new year.
The eve of the Spring Festival is called "New Year's Eve". New Year's Eve is a time for family reunion. The whole family sits together, eats a sumptuous New Year's Eve dinner, talks and laughs until dawn, this is called staying up late. As soon as the bell rings at midnight on New Year's Eve, people still eat dumplings. In ancient times, zero o'clock was called "Zi Shi". Zi Shi on New Year's Eve is the time when the old and new years turn over. People eat dumplings at this time, which means "Geng Sui Jiao Zi". This is also the origin of the name "dumplings".
After New Year’s Eve, it’s the first day of the Lunar New Year. Starting from the first day of the Lunar New Year, people visit relatives, see friends and pay New Year greetings to each other. New Year greetings are an important custom during the Spring Festival. When paying New Year greetings, everyone should say some auspicious words to wish happiness and health.
Setting off firecrackers is children’s favorite activity during the Spring Festival.
Legend has it that setting off firecrackers can drive away evil spirits, so every year from New Year's Eve, continuous firecrackers are heard everywhere. Bursts of fireworks and sound of firecrackers add an extremely lively and festive atmosphere to the festival.
During the Spring Festival, temple fairs are held in many places. The wonderful dragon and lion dance performances, various handicrafts and local snacks at the temple fair attract thousands of people celebrating the festival.
With the development of the times, the customs of celebrating the Spring Festival have also undergone some changes. For example, to prevent environmental pollution, many cities have banned the setting off of fireworks. But this does not affect the lively atmosphere of the festival. On New Year's Eve, every family still has to get together to eat New Year's Eve dinner and watch exciting TV programs until the early morning of the first day of the new year.
In the hearts of Chinese people in China and around the world, the Spring Festival will always be the most important holiday.
Lantern Festival
The fifteenth day of the first lunar month is the traditional Chinese Lantern Festival. Because the first lunar month is also called Yuan Yue, the night of the fifteenth day of the first lunar month is the first full moon night in the year, and "xiao" means "night", so the festival on the fifteenth night of the first lunar month is called the Lantern Festival.
During the Lantern Festival, Chinese people have the custom of admiring lanterns and eating Lantern Festival. As the saying goes, "On the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, there are lanterns." Therefore, the Lantern Festival is also called the Lantern Festival.
The custom of appreciating lanterns during the Lantern Festival began in the Han Dynasty and has a history of more than 2,000 years. On the day of the Lantern Festival, lanterns and colorful lights were everywhere, and it was very lively. As soon as night comes, people flock to watch the lanterns. Colorful palace lanterns, wall lanterns, character lanterns, flower lanterns, revolving door lanterns, animal lanterns, toy lanterns... merge into a sea of ??lanterns. Some lanterns also have riddles written on them, causing lantern watchers to rush to guess.
Eating Yuanxiao during the Lantern Festival is a traditional custom of the Chinese people. This kind of food existed as early as the Song Dynasty more than 1,000 years ago. Yuanxiao is a small round ball made of glutinous rice flour, filled with fillings made of sugar and various nuts. After being cooked, it tastes sweet and delicious. Because this food was eaten on the Lantern Festival, people later called it Lantern Festival. Chinese people hope that everything will go well. They eat Yuanxiao on the first full moon night of the year, hoping that their families will be reunited, harmonious, happy and complete.
Twenty-Four Solar Terms
On the Chinese calendar, there are two solar terms every month, and there are 24 solar terms in a year.
Solar terms are unique to the Chinese lunar calendar and are the creation of the Chinese working people. During long-term productive labor, the ancients gradually understood the laws of climate change. Based on the relationship between the sun and the earth, they divided the number of days in a year into 24 equal parts to represent changes in seasons and climate. In this way, there is a solar term almost every 15 days, and there are two solar terms every month. The dates of the twenty-four solar terms in the Gregorian calendar are almost fixed. The solar terms in the first half of the year (January to June) are around the 6th and 21st of each month; the solar terms in the second half of the year (July to December) are around every month. Around the 8th and 23rd of the month.
The names of the twenty-four solar terms are: Beginning of Spring, Rain, Waking of Insects, Vernal Equinox, Qingming Summer, Xiaoman, Earrings, Summer Solstice, Minor Heat, Great Heat, Beginning of Autumn, End of Summer, White Dew, Autumn Equinox, Cold Dew, Frost Descent, Beginning of Winter , light snow, heavy snow, winter solstice, light cold, big cold.
The beginning of spring, the beginning of summer, the beginning of autumn, and the beginning of winter represent the beginning of the four seasons.
The vernal and autumnal equinoxes are two days of the year when day and night are the same length.
The summer solstice is the day with the longest day and shortest night of the year. The winter solstice is the day with the shortest day and longest night of the year.
Rain means it started to rain.
Jingzhe means that hibernating insects are awakened after the spring thunder.
Qingming means that after spring arrives, the bright and clear spring scenery replaces the cold and yellow scenery in winter.
Guyu means that there will be more rain from now on, which is very beneficial to the growth of grains.
Xiaoman means that the grains of crops that matured in summer are beginning to be full.
The awns tell people that the wheat has matured.
Minor Heat and Great Heat indicate the degree of hot weather. Great Heat is the hottest time of the year.
End of Heat means that the hot weather is about to pass.
White dew tells people that when dew begins to fall, the weather will get colder.
Cold dew means that the dew is heavy and the weather is getting colder.
Frost means the beginning of frost.
Light snow and heavy snow represent the difference in the snowing season and the amount of snow.
Minor Cold and Dahan represent the degree of coldness in winter. Dahan is the time of year.
Chinese Wine
In China, wine has a longer history than tea. In 1986, a jug of wine unearthed in Henan was an ancient wine dating back more than 3,000 years.
China has many famous wines, including Moutai, Wuliangye, Fenjiu, Zhuyeqing, Luzhou Laojiao, Gujing Gongjiu, Jiafan Wine, Changyu Wine, Great Wall Dry Red Wine, etc., which are all world-renowned famous wines.
There are more stories about wine in Chinese history: Tao Yuanming, a poet of the Jin Dynasty, could not live without wine for a day; Li Bai, a great poet of the Tang Dynasty, had "100 poems about wine fighting", and the more he drank, the better his poems were; the Song Dynasty Wu Song, a hero from Liangshan, drank 18 bowls of wine in one breath and killed a tiger with his bare hands...
In 1915, at the Panama International Exposition, China sent Moutai liquor to be exhibited and evaluated. It is said that the Americans who hosted the expo thought the yellow porcelain bottles used to hold the wine looked unsightly and did not allow Moutai to participate in the exhibition. The Chinese delegation was very angry. In the midst of a heated argument, a Chinese sommelier suddenly threw a bottle of Maotai liquor to the ground, causing the house to be filled with a strange aroma. Representatives from various countries were greatly surprised. In the end, Moutai was named "World Famous Wine" and won the gold medal.
Moutai, Scotch whiskey and French brandy are known as the three most famous liquors in the world.
The Four Spirits - Symbols of Ancient Auspiciousness
In ancient China, unicorns, phoenixes, turtles and dragons were spiritual animals. Therefore, they were called the Four Spirits as auspicious symbols. logo. In fact, except for the turtle, the other three are legendary animals, which are imagined and created by people themselves.
The legendary Qilin has a body like a deer, covered with scales, a single horn on its head, fleshy balls on its horns, feet like horse hooves, and a tail like an ox's tail. Kirin is considered a virtuous and benevolent beast, and emperors of all dynasties regarded it as a symbol of peace and prosperity. Kirin can be seen in the residences and gardens of the Imperial Palace in Beijing and the residences and gardens of emperors Yihe and Tong, either cast in bronze or carved in stone. Among the people, Kirin is also valued very much. During the Spring Festival, people from all over the Yangtze River in China often carry paper unicorns and perform in front of their homes to express their best wishes. In addition, there is also the legend of "Qilin giving birth to children" in China. On the one hand, people use Qilin to symbolize promising children and grandchildren; on the other hand, it also expresses the hope that a child will be born early and the family will be prosperous.
The phoenix has a beautiful crown on its head and is covered in colorful feathers. It is an imaginary image that combines the characteristics of many birds and beasts. The Phoenix is ??the "King of Birds" in Chinese legend, symbolizing good luck, peace and political clarity. Like the dragon, the phoenix has been regarded as a symbol of power and dignity by emperors throughout the ages. Phoenix crowns, phoenix carriages and other things related to the phoenix can only be used by the royal family and immortals. However, later the phoenix also became the mascot of the people. Especially in traditional Chinese weddings, wind becomes the decoration on the bride's dress and headdress, representing auspiciousness and joy. Phoenix is ??also widely used in traditional folk patterns, symbolizing good luck and peace. Phoenix is ??often combined with other mascots to form patterns, such as "dragon and phoenix appear", "phoenix and unicorn present auspiciousness", etc. It is also a symbol of good luck and good luck.
The turtle is the only existing animal among the four spirits, and it is also the longest-lived animal. People not only regard the turtle as a symbol of health and longevity, but also believe that it has the spiritual ability to predict the future. In ancient times, before any major event, wizards would burn tortoise shells and then predict good or bad luck based on the cracked patterns on the tortoise shells.
Therefore, people call turtles "divine turtles" and "spiritual turtles". The divine turtle was once highly respected in China. In the palaces, residences and tombs of ancient emperors, there were stone or bronze turtles to symbolize the long-term destiny of the country.
The dragon is considered to be China's largest divine creature and the largest mascot. People are all familiar with the image of dragons, but no one has ever seen a real dragon. Like the wind and the unicorn, the dragon is an animal imagined by people. It has an ox head, antlers, shrimp eyes, eagle claws, a snake body, a lion tail, and is covered with scales. It is a composite of many animals. . In people's imagination, dragons can walk on the ground, swim in the water, fly in the clouds, and are full of infinite divine power. For thousands of years, feudal emperors regarded it as a symbol of power and dignity, and ordinary people also regarded it as the embodiment of virtue and strength and a lucky thing. Therefore, the image of dragon can be seen everywhere in China. On the roofs of palaces and temples, and on royal utensils, dragons are carved and painted everywhere; on festive days, Lao Bai also posts dragon patterns, dances with dragon lanterns, and rows dragon boats; he also names his children. I am willing to use the word "dragon". As the largest mascot among the "Four Spirits", the dragon has become a symbol of the Chinese nation. Chinese people all over the world consider themselves "descendants of the dragon."
Folk Temple Fair
Temple fair is a social activity among Chinese people. It is said that it originated from the ancient worship of the earth god, and then gradually turned into a market and culture for the exchange of folk goods. A place for performance.
Temple fairs are generally held in temples and open spaces near temples, and are held on festivals or specified days. Some are only held during the Spring Festival every year. Although temple fairs are held at different times in various places, the basic content is similar: during the temple fair, farmers and vendors bring their own agricultural products, local specialties, antiques, jades, flowers, birds, fish and insects collected from various places to the temple fair for trading; Street craftsmen set up stalls to sell folk handicrafts and special snacks; folk artists set up a stage to perform songs, dances and folk arts... The people visiting the temple fair came happily to buy and sell goods, watch performances and taste snacks. It was really lively.
Nowadays, Beijing holds temple fairs every Spring Festival. The more famous ones include Baiyunguan Temple Fair, Ditan Temple Fair, Longtan Lake Temple Fair, Longfu Temple Fair, etc. Temple fairs in Beijing have retained many traditional customs, such as riding donkeys to visit the temple fair in Baiyunguan Temple Fair and squatting while looking for money. The items sold at the temple fair also have northern characteristics, such as diabolo, windmills, swords, guns, swords and halberds and other toys; snacks such as giant sugar-coated haws and tea soup are all very popular among the people.
Wedding
China is a large, multi-ethnic country with a long history. Different ethnic groups have different wedding customs in different periods. The Chinese regard marriage as a very important step in life. One thing is that the Chinese wedding ceremony has a lot of particularities and is very complicated.
The traditional Chinese wedding includes three letters and six rituals (letter of appointment, letter of gift, letter of welcome, acceptance, name asking, acceptance, acceptance, request for date, personal greeting), replacement of Geng Pu, passing The steps include wedding, wedding ceremony, bed setting, dowry, wedding, welcoming the bride, going out, passing the door, and returning home after three dynasties.
Modern weddings will still retain some traditional customs, but they have been simplified a lot, and many new wedding styles are emerging. But generally speaking, Chinese weddings are grand, festive and lively. Relatives and friends will congratulate the couple and wish the couple a long life together and a son soon.
In addition, other ethnic groups in China also have their own wedding customs with national characteristics.