A Glimpse of Chinese Culture《中国文化概论》讲义-chapters 1-8

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Chapter 1

The Origin of Chinese Culture

文化词汇

Confucian philosophy 儒家哲学Confucius孔子Mencius孟子

the descendants of Yan and Huang 炎黄子孙

the Spring and Autumn and the Warring States Periods 春秋战国时期

The Art of War《孙子兵法》porcelain 瓷器

三皇五帝Three Emperors and Five Sovereigns)

Gregorian calendar/ solar calendar格里高利历,是国际通用的历法,即公历

lunar calendar阴历

the Twenty-four Solar Terms二十四节气

Chinese Zodiac生肖

Chinese Culture---Past and Present

Chinese history began with two legendary figures—Emperor Huang and Emperor Yan, who, together with their tribes, inhabited the drainage area along the middle reaches（中游）of the Yellow River. By the time of Xia Dynasty, after centuries of living side by side, these two tribes had gradually merged into（合并，融合）one. Consequently, the Chinese people usually call themselves“the descendants of Yan and Huang”.People at that time believed that the land they lived on was the center of the world, and called their state the "Middle Kingdom"(中国), thus giving China its country name.

Traditional Chinese culture is recorded not only in history books and documents, but also in archeological records(考古记载), such as ancient city walls, palaces（宫殿）, temples（寺庙）, pagodas（宝塔）, and grottos（洞窟）; artifacts（史前古器物）, such as bronze objects, weapons, bronze mirrors, coins, jade and pottery objects, and curios; and folk culture, including song and dance, embroidery（刺绣）, cuisine（烹饪）, clothing, tea ceremonies, drinking games, lanterns, riddles, martial arts（武术）, chess and kites. With a continuous history of 5,000 years, it has undergone frequent transformations to produce a rich and vital cultural heritage.

In the modern day, with the rise of western economic and military power beginning in the mid-19th century, Western systems of social and political organization have gained adherents in China. Indeed, within today‟s globalized environment, modern cultures interact and cooperate increasingly more with each other. China‟s culture of the future will most likely reflect this cross-cultural dimension. Thus, obtaining a solid underst anding of China‟s culture of the past is necessary in order to successfully embrace all that the culture has to offer to the world.

The Appellation of China

China is the appellation of our country given by foreigners. The porcelain china is the transliteration of the place name Changnan(昌南), which was the old name for Jingdezhen（景德镇）. The porcelain made in Changnan was smooth and bright, and earned another name of artificial jade. It became famous both home and abroad and was exported to Europe in large quantities.

As time passed, people in Europe forgot the meaning of Changnan and switched the original meaning of porcelain of the word “china” to the place of its origin.

The Alternative Names of China

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⏹Chixian, Shenzhou(赤县、神州)

⏹Jiuzhou (九州)

⏹Hua ( 华)

⏹Huaxia(华夏)

⏹Zhonghua(中华)

⏹Hainei(海内)

Chinese Mythology

Chinese Mythology is a collection of cultural history, folktales（民间故事）, and religions that have been passed down in oral or written form. Chinese mythology is similar to modern religion in that they both believe in relationships between mankind and a higher power.

Historians have conjectured（推测）that Chinese mythology began in 12th century BC (close to the time of the Trojan War 特洛伊战争). The myths and legends were passed down in oral form for over a thousand years, before being written down in early book such as Shui Jing Zhu and Shan Hai Jing.

The classification of myth神话的分类

Creation myth 创世神话：Nvwa Created Man(女娲造人）

Hero myth 英雄神话：Houyi Shooting the Sun(后羿射日)

War myth 战争神话：Yellow Emperor Tackled Human-God(黄帝擒蚩尤)

Cultural Mosaic

Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches

The standard Gregorian calendar is generally referred to as the solar calendar in China. The traditional Chinese lunar calendar, also known as the Jiazi calendar, counts the years in sixty-year cycles by combining two series of numbers---the 10 Heavenly Stems and 12 Earthly Branches.

The Twenty-four Solar Terms

The traditional Chinese lunar year is divided into twenty-four solar terms, according to the position of the sun on the ecliptic in relationship to the earth. The solar terms designate agricultural periods, and can predict changing seasonal conditions, temperature, and weather throughout the course of the year. They are extremely important to agricultural production.

Changes in the four seasons are determined by eight solar terms:立春( the Beginning of Spring),春分( the Spring Equinox ),立夏(the Beginning of Summer ),夏至(the Summer Solstice),立秋(the Beginning of Autumn),秋分( the Autumnal Equinox),立冬( the Beginning of Winter),冬至(the Winter Solstice )

Changes in temperature are indicated by five solar terms:小暑Slight Heat ,大暑Great Heat ,处暑the Limit of Heat ,小寒Slight Cold ,大寒Great Cold

Changing weather conditions are indicated by seven solar terms:雨水Rain Water ,谷雨Grain Rain ,白露White Dew ,寒露Cold Dew,霜降Frost's Descent ,小雪Slight Snow ,大雪Great Snow .

Recurring natural phenomena are indicated by four solar terms:惊蛰the Waking of Insects ,清明Pure Brightness ,小满Grain Full,芒种Grain in Ear

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Chinese Zodiac

In ancient times, our ancestors counted the years with 10 heavenly stems and 12 earthly branches. Although this was scientific, most people were illiterate and could not memorize or calculate easily. Thus the animals that influenced people's lives were chosen to symbolize the terrestrial branches: the rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, sheep, monkey , rooster, dog and pig.

Chapter 2 Culinary Culture

文化词汇

culinary厨房的，烹饪的;烹调用的

cuisine烹饪，烹调法;菜肴

main food主食,主粮（staple food ）

Fire temperature火候

food tonic 食补

“Food is the first necessity of the people”(“民以食为天。”)

“Governing a great nation is like cooking a small fish - too much handling will spoil it.”( Lao-tzu, Chinese philosopher) (“治大国若烹小鲜。”)

Well fed, well bred. 衣食足，而后知礼节。

“There is neither rejection to his rice being of the finest q uality, nor to his meat being finely minced.”(食不厌精，脍不厌细).

A general introduction of Chinese food

Chinese cuisine(菜肴)is widely seen as representing one of the richest and most diverse

culinary(烹饪的) cuisines and heritages in the world.

A meal in Chinese culture is typically seen as consisting of two or more general components: Zhushi (main food)---typically rice, noodles, or mantou (steamed bun), and accompanying dishes of vegetables, meat, fish, or other items, known as cai (dish) in the Chinese language. This cultural conceptualization is in some ways in contrast to cuisines of Northern Europe and the USA, where meat or animal protein(蛋白质) is often considered the main food(主食).

Rice is a critical part of much of Chinese cuisine. However, in northern China, wheat-based products including noodles and steamed buns predominate(占支配地位). Soup is usually served at the end of a meal. However, in southern China it is more often served at the start of a meal.

Food symbolism

In China, foods are given particular meanings, so that in certain occasion a type of food, can only be eaten by some specific individuals, or must be eaten in specific occasion.

The Chinese word for fish “Yu”sounds like the word abundance(盈余). As a result, fish is always served to symbolize accumulations of prosperity and wealth with the New Year's Eve meals. In addition, the fish is served whole, with the head and the tail attached, symbolizing a good beginning and ending for the coming year.

Long noodle is the symbol of longevity(长寿) in Chinese culture. They are as much a part of Chinese birthday celebrations as a birthday cake with lit candles in many countries, so that youngsters or seniors all will have a bowl of Long Life Noodle in the expectation of a healthy life. The Chinese believe eggs symbolize fertility. After a baby is born, parents may hold a “red egg

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and ginger party”, where they serve round hard-boiled eggs to announce the birth.

Seeds---lotus seeds(莲子) , watermelon seeds, etc.---represent bearing many children in Chinese culture.In a Chinese wedding, people often put red dates(红枣) , peanuts, Longan, and lotus seeds on the bed of the new couple, representing they will reproduce very soon.

Chinese cooking art

The complete presence of color, shape, aroma(芳香，香味) and flavor(色香味形俱全) Color：To have a bright, pleased and harmonious color is one of the main principles when cooking Chinese food.

Shape：Shape mainly depends on methods of cutting.

Aroma：Aroma means the fragrant and appetizing smell of the dishes.

Flavor：Flavor refers to tasting the food: salty, sweet, sour, bitter, hot, etc.

Cooking Methods

Time and temperature play an important role in cooking.

They include boiling (煮), stewing (煲/炖), braising (烧/焖/烩), frying (煎), stir-frying (炒), quick-frying (爆), deep-frying (炸), frying and simmering (扒), sautéing (快煎), simmering (煨), smoking (熏), roasting or barbecuing (烤), baking (烘), steaming (蒸) and scalding (白灼).

Seasonings

Taste mainly depends on the seasonings.

There are many tastes—salty (salt, soy sauce), sweet (sugar, honey), sour (vinegar), pungent (chili, ginger, scallion 葱), fragrant (sesame oil香油, coriander 香菜, wine), prickled (麻的) (prickly ash 花椒) and tangy (monosodium glutamate or MSG 味精) and bitter (dried tangerine 陈皮, bitter apricot kernel 苦杏仁).

Eight Cuisines

China is a vast country with diverse climate, customs, products, and habits. People in coastal areas prefer seafood and aquatic(水产的) products, whereas those in central and northwest China eat more domestic animals and poultry. All together, the most influential and typical known by the public are the 'Eight Cuisines'. These are as follows: Shandong Cuisine, Sichuan Cuisine, Guangdong Cuisine, Fujian Cuisine , Jiangsu Cuisine, Zhejiang Cuisine, Hunan Cuisine, and Anhui Cuisine.

Table manners

At a formal banquet, the host prepares adequate seating for the guests. For a large number of guests, the elderly or people of high status are allocated specific seats. Special guests and elderly sit on the north side of the table or directly facing the entrance to the room. The concept of “honored south, humble north” is closely related with traditional Chinese etiquette.

(一)Some Specific Guidelines:

-- Wait for the elders to begin the meal first.

-- When a new course is served, the elders are first to eat.

-- Since the food stand rotates on the round table, eat only what is in front of you.

-- Leave some food on the dish, but empty the rice in your rice bowl.

-- Chinese enjoy eating very much and are noisy during meals. It is important to adopt the same mood with a good attitude and joyful conversations.

（二）Some Don‟ts:

-- Don’t Chew with Your Mouth Open

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-- Don’t Make noise while eating

-- Don’t Speak with Your Mouth Full

-- Don’t Pick/Suck Teeth

-- Don’t Put Your Elbows on the Table

-- Don’t Spit Food (Bones, Skin, etc.) out of Your Mouth

-- Don’t Pick Up Your Plate or Bowl

-- Don’t Pass Gas Or Burp

-- Don’t Clean Ears with Fingernails

-- Don’t Smoke

-- Don’t eat only one food that suits your taste best.

-- Don’t flip over fish.

-- Don’t get more food if there is some left in your dish, and wait for your turn after you empty your dish.

-- Don’t Select food too slowly.

Chapter3 Tea and Wine Culture

Chinese Tea Culture

China has a rich and sophisticated(成熟的) tea culture. The Chinese have a common saying, “Seven things in the house: firewood, rice, oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar and tea”. Tea is a simple beverage(饮料), and one that has long been central to the lives of millions of people, originally in the East, and now virtually worldwide.

The History of Tea Culture

"Tea as a beverage originated with Shennong." ——The Classic of Tea

“茶为之饮，发乎神农也。”——《茶经》

"Shennong tasted hundreds of herbs; he encountered seventy two poisons daily and used tea as an antidote."

“神农尝百草，日遇七十二喜，得茶而解之。”——《神农本草经》

It is often said that “tea started in the Tang Dynasty and flourished in the Song Dynasty”. In the Tang Dynasty a method called “green steaming”was invented. After steaming, the tea leaves were ground, made into cakes, and then dried and sealed for storage.

In the Tang Dynasty, Lu Yu（陆羽）, the Saint of Tea/Tea sage ”（茶圣）, wro te the world‟s first monograph《The Classic of Tea》(《茶经》).

Tea was popular among men of letters（文人）, the upper class , the temple and ordinary people in Song dynasty.

Then, in the Ming Dynasty(1368-1644), tea culture underwent a renaissance(复兴) with the familiar dark tea, green tea, and Oolong tea all developed during this time. Zhu Yuanzhang (reigned 1368-1398), the first Ming Emperor, oversaw a change from roll tea to loose tea, and this tradition has been retained ever since.

As their understanding of tea improved, people were no longer content to harvest tea from the wild, but began to plant and cultivate tea trees, while at the same time processing techniques were improving, with different methods producing different types of tea.

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The Classifications of Chinese Tea

Green tea绿茶Black tea红茶Oolong tea乌龙茶

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Yellow tea黄茶White tea 白茶Scented tea花茶

Compressed tea砖茶

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Customs of Tea Drinking

•unique customs of taking tea in different regions and of different nationalities:

•Guangdong Morning tea

•Fujian Kongfu tea

•Hunan Lei tea

•Sichuan “covered-bowl tea”

•The Bai nationality “Three Cups of Tea ”

•Tibetan Buttered tea(酥油茶)

•Inner Mongolia Milk tea

•To show respect

•To apologize

•To express thanks to the elders on one’s wedding day

Chinese Wine Culture

The Origin of Chinese Wine

Chinese wine, as a special form of culture, has a history of more than five thousand years . Chinese wine making can be traced back as far as 4000 BC, to the early period of the NeolithicYangshao Culture (新石器时代的仰韶文化). During its long development, Chinese wine has developed distinctive characteristics.

Types of Chinese Wine

Huangjiu (yellow rice wine)

Huangjiu is one of three dominated brewed wines (beer and grape wine) in the world. Huang Jiu predates all the other liquors, with a history of several thousand years. Among these liquors the Shaoxing Rice Wine is the most famous.

Baijiu(white wine)

Being made from sorghum, corn, barley or wheat

Fruit Wine

Fermented alcoholic beverages made from a variety of base ingredients (other than grapes); May also have additional flavors taken from fruits, flowers, and herbs.

Red Wine

A type of wine made from dark-coloured (black) grape varieties. The actual colour of the wine can range from intense violet, typical of young wines, through to brick red for mature wines and brown for older red wines.

Beer

Toast etiquette

Chinese Drinking Etiquette(礼仪)

The Chinese people care more about the people we drink with.

That is Chinese drinking etiquette reflects the respect of the drinkers

The host and guests have their own seat and order of toast(敬酒顺序)

When toast,the host come first,and firstly,they should toast the most honored guest.

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Tthe wine vessel must be full.

The younger should toast the elder and drink all of the wine.(先干为敬)

Western Drinking Etiquette

The drinking etiquette of west show the respect of wine.

To distinguish wine we need to watch its color, smell its fragrance, taste its taste(观其色、闻其香、品其味)

They drink for enjoying, so sometimes they drink themselves. They do not encourage others to drink, neither do they consider letting other drunk is a way to show their etiquette.

Chapter 4 Traditional Festivals and Customs

文化词汇

Spring Festival （春节）

Spring Festival Gala春节联欢晚会

Lantern Festival (元宵节）

Tomb-sweeping Festival (清明节）

Dragon Boat Festival（端午节）

Mid-autumn Festival （中秋节）

Double Ninth Festival （重阳节）

Intangible Cultural Heritage非物质文化遗产

Chinese major traditional festivals

Spring Festival （春节）

China’s most important festival falls on the 1st day of the 1st lunar month each year. Family members gather just as they do for Christmas in the West.

Customs

Spring Cleaning

Write and paste couplets(对联) on doors

Set off fireworks

Receive Gift Money

Lantern Festival (元宵节）

The Lantern Festival, celebrated on the 15th day of the first lunar month, is closely related to the Spring Festival. It marks the end of the New Year celebrations, following which life returns to normal. The most prominent activity of the Lantern Festival is the grand display of beautiful lanterns.

Customs

Guessing Riddles

Eating Y uanxiao

Tomb-sweeping Festival (清明节）

Tomb-sweeping Day is a time to remember the dead and the dearly departed. More important, it is a period to honor and to pay respect to one‟s deceased（亡故的）ancestors and family members. It falls in early spring. “Qing Ming” literally means “Pure Brightness”.

After the festival, the temperature rises and rainfall increases in readiness for spring plowing (春耕) and sowing.

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Customs

Visit the graves of the ancestors

Sweep the ashes on the tomb

Go to the suburb (Ta Qing)

Dragon Boat Festival（端午节）

The Dragon Boat Festival falls on the 5th day of the 5th lunar month.

Customs

Eating Zongzi

Holding dragon boat races

Mid-autumn Festival （中秋节）

The Mid-Autumn Festival falls on the 15th day of the 8th lunar month, usually in October.

The round shape to a Chinese means family reunion, therefore the Mid-Autumn Festival is most romanticized in China as a day of family reunion and a festival with friends.

Customs

Eating mooncakes

Enjoying the full moon

Double Ninth Festival （重阳节）

The Double-Ninth Festival falls on the ninth day of the ninth lunar month and has a history of more than 1,700 years. The ninth day of the ninth lunar month is a day when the two Yang numbers meet. So it is called Chong Yang.

Customs

Climb the mountains(登高）

Appreciate chrysanthemums（赏菊）

Visit the Old Men House

Other traditional festivals

Qixi Festival (Double Seventh Festival )

The Double Seventh Festival, on the 7th day of the 7th lunar month, is a traditional festival full of romance. It often falls on a day in August.

It has been regarded as China‟s Valentine's Day, Qi Qiao Jie（七巧节）, the Daughter‟s Festival （女儿节）. It is important day for girls.

Ghost Festival(中元节)

In Chinese tradition, the fifteenth day of the seventh month in the lunar calendar is called Ghost Day and the seventh month in general is regarded as the Ghost Month , in which ghosts and spirits, including those of the deceased ancestors, come out from the underworld.

Customs

People often prepare a large feast to the ghosts.

People release river lights to warm and comfort the homeless ghosts.

The lotus lights direct the ways of the underworld to the spirits.

Burning paper money and other offerings to let the ghosts live a better life underworld

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Winter Solstice冬至

Winter solstice is a very important solar term in Chinese Lunar calendar.

Being a traditional holiday as well, it is still now celebrated quite often in many regions. Early during the Spring and Autumn period, 2500 odd years from now, Winter solstice was first determined as the Chinese traditional solar term among the total 24 terms.

Laba (腊八)

Laba is celebrated on the 8th day of the 12th lunar month. The 12th lunar month is called the La month, which means a world of ice and snow. Ba means eight. The 8th day of that month was considered a day for making sacrifices (供奉,祭品)to gods and ancestors to ensure a peaceful life and a good harvest in the next year.

Chapter 5Dress and Adornment Culture

文化词汇

New Stone Age新石器时代

embroidery 刺绣;刺绣品

Wei, Jin, and Southern and Northern dynasties魏晋南北朝

Silk Road 丝绸之路

Maritime Silk Road海上丝绸之路

Chinese tunic suit(Zhongshan suit /Mao suit)中山装

The Tang Costumes唐装

The History of Chinese Clothing

In ancient society people lived in crude caves, naked. During the New Stone Age they invented bone needle and began to sew simple winter dress with leaves and animal skins.

In the class society, dress became the token of social status. It was from the Xia and Shang Dynasties that dress system came into being in China. In the Zhou Dynasty, the system was perfected. From then on the distinctions as to color, design and adornment of dress were strictly made among the emperor, officials and the common people.

As early as the Zhou Dynasty, garments were already classified into:

⏹sacrificial attire 祭服

⏹court attire 朝服

⏹army uniform 戎服

⏹mourning attire 丧服

⏹wedding attire. 婚服

China's complete code of costume and trappings was established in the Han Dynasty

The Wei, Jin, Northern and Southern Dynasties were not stable. In fact, the society was in great turmoil. Therefore, the intellectuals avoided politics but resorted to the philosophies of Taoism and Buddhism, which affected their clothing. They preferred to wear loose clothes.

The Tang Dynasty (618-907) wrote the most brilliant page in the history of Chinese clothing. People's clothes were more varied than before because the state was more open to the outside world and people became more cosmopolitan in their thinking.

Before the Tang, Chinese women were restricted by the old Confucian code where a woman's status was low and her clothing had to be concealed. However during the Tang, women's clothing

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gradually became broad and loose. Tang Dynasty was considered by some as another turning point for Hanfu. During the Tang era, foreign culture was lively accepted by the Chinese and blended into Chinese traditional culture.

Casual wear appeared during the Song Dynasty, and clothes were simple and elegant.

The rank system of officials of the Song Dynasty followed that of the Tang Dynasty, so official costumes in the palace during the two dynasties were similar.

During the Yuan Dynasty, the Mongolian ethnic group, known as the people on horseback, was in power. The simple and unadorned (朴素的) style of clothing was mainly a combination of Mongolian and Han influences.

Dramatic changes took place during the Ming Dynasty. There was no limitation to one style and natural beauty was advocated, thus bringing vigor and vitality to clothing culture.

During the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), clothes became elegant, poised, and glorious. The retreat from outside cultures has left a precious heritage for traditional Chinese clothes.

Typical Chinese costumes

Cheong-sam(Qi Pao)

The name "cheongsam," means "long dress" , entered the English vocabulary from the dialect of China's Guangdong Province.

Cheong-sam came from Qizhuang of manchu women‟s costume. The cheongsam is easy and comfortable to wear, snugly fitting the female Chinese figure. Its neckline is high, collar closed, and its sleeves may be short, medium or full length, depending on the sea son or the wearer‟s taste. The dress is buttoned on the right side, with a loose bodice, a fitted waist, and side-slits to the hem, all of which combine to set off the beauty of the female‟s figure.

Chinese tunic suit(Zhongshan suit /Mao suit)

The modern Chinese tunic suit is a style of male attire known in China as the Zhongshan suit, and known in the West as the Mao suit (after Mao Zedong). Sun Zhongshan introduced the style shortly after the founding of the Republic of China as a form of national dress although with a distinctly political and later governmental implication.

The Tang Costumes

A tang costumes(literally: "Chinese suit" ) is a Chinese jacket that originated at the end of the Qing Dynasty. The tangzhuang evolved from the magua (Chinese: 马褂), which the Han Chinese were forced to wear it during the Qing Dynasty. In modern times it has been adopted by common people. They are often worn by men, although women wear them as well.

Silk and the Silk Road

Legend has it that in ancient times, Lei Zu（嫘祖）, the wife of Huang Di, taught people how to raise silkworms and how to extract the silk.

Silk production peaked during the Han Dynasty when the manufactured goods were transported as far away as Rome from Chang'an (today's Xian). The overland trade route was to become famously known as the Silk Road.

Through the silk trade, Chinese garment design and style had its greatest impact on the rest of the world. Conversely, garments, crafts and styles of other countries had their own profound influence on Chinese garments as well.