National CustomsGift Giving Etiquette in China中国送礼礼仪. In general, gifts are given at Chinese New Year, weddings, births and birthdays.. Do not give scissors, knives as they indicate暗示the severing of the relationship. 切断关系. Do not give clocks, handkerchiefs as they are associated with funerals and death.与葬礼与死亡有联系. Do not wrap gifts in white or black paper.. Four is an unlucky number so do not give four of anything. Eight is the luckiest number, so giving eight of something brings people luck. . Always present gifts with two hands.. Gifts are not opened when received.. Gifts may be refused three times before they are accepted. British Social Customs英国社交礼仪TimeBritish people place considerable value on punctuality.非常注重准时In Britain, people make great effort 努力to arrive on time. It is often considered impolite不礼貌的to arrive even a few minutes late. If you are unable to keep an appointment, 守约it is expected that you call the person you are meeting.Invitations“ Drop in anytime” and “come see me soon” are idioms often used in social settings but seldom meant to be taken literally. It is wise to telephone before visiting someone at home.Never accept an invitation unless you really plan to go. You may refuse by saying, “Thank you for invitin g me, but I will not be able to come.”It is considered polite to give a gift to your host, especially if you have been invited for a meal. Flowers, chocolate, or a small gift are all appropriate.合适的A thank-you note or telephone call after the visit is also considered polite to express your appreciation感谢for the invitation.Introduction and GreetingIt is proper to shake hands with everyone to whom you are introduced, both men and women. An appropriate response to an introduction is "Pleased to meet you". If you want to introduce yourself to someone, extend your hand伸出for a handshake and say "Hello, I am....". Hugging is only for friends.Chinese and western table mannersManners in every country are different. What is polite in China may not be polite in western countries. There are some basic rules. The best way to learn good manners is to watch others. This is the best way to avoid making mistakes when you are unsure of 不确定what to do.In western countries-Soup, as well as all American food is eaten quietly. Do not slurp 发出声音the soup. While eating, remember not to talk with your mouth full of food.-In America, people do not use toothpicks 牙签at the table.-With the American style, you hold the fork in your left hand and the knife in your right hand to cut your meat or vegetables.-The real difference is that in the West, you have your own plate of food, while in China the dishes are placed on the table and everyone shares.In China-On a typical Chinese dining table, dishes are always presented in被放在the center of the table.-Apart from除了soup, all dishes should be eaten with chopsticks. Never stick chopsticks in the center of rice, as this is the way to sacrifice. 祭祀- Chinese hosts like to put food into the plates of their guests.给客人夹菜This is a sign标志of politeness.礼貌In formal dinners, there are always "public" chopsticks and spoons. It is always polite to eat the food. If you do not eat it, just leave the food in the plate.Should burning firecrackers and fireworks be banned?No, I don’t think it should be banned during the Spring Festival. Actually the custom of burning firecrackers and fireworks is related to 与…相关the story of Nian. Besides, burning firecrackers and fireworks during the Spring Festival can bring people happy festive atmosphere 节日气氛and children could get a lot of fun from it. If it were banned, Nian and the bad luck wouldn’t be scared away; there wouldn’t be festive atmosphere on the New Year’s Eve, and children might have less fun since it would become quiet.There is also some downside缺点of burning firecrackers and fireworks. It’s noisy and dangerous. So if I were a policy maker, I would restrict限制the time and place of burning firecrackers and fireworks. And if I had children, I would watch my kids carefully to prevent them from being hurt by burning firecrackers and fireworks.Lantern FestivalLantern Festival falls on 在…the 15th day of the 1st lunar month,正月十五which marks the end of the Spring Festival. This day's important activity is watching lanterns. Actually what makes the festival special is not the day but the night. Lanterns of various shapes and sizes 各种形状和大小的are hung 被挂在in the streets. Guessing lantern riddles is a part of the festival, which is interesting and full of wisdom .充满智慧If visitors have the right answers to the riddles, they will get gifts. People eat Yuan Xiao on this day, so it is also called Yuan Xiao Festival and Yuan Xiao is small ball made of glutinous rice flour 糯米粉and tastes sweet.Qing Ming Festival/ Tomb-sweeping DayTomb-Sweeping Day usually falls on April 4, 5 or 6 each year which means clear and bright 清新明亮in Chinese. Because the Chinese believe that the spirits of deceased ancestors逝去的祖先would look after the family, it is also a day to visit ancesto r’s graves , sweep away the dirt and leave offerings 祭品.Since it has become a public holiday, people should take the opportunity to explore the traditional holiday from cultural and historical aspects.从文化和历史的角度Tomb-Sweeping Day should not become a day just for visiting ancestor's graves 祖先的坟墓and burning paper money. Instead, according to tradition, theTomb-Sweeping Day should be a festival for returning to nature , not just to cry over the deceased.逝者Dragon Boat FestivalIt is celebrated on the 5 day of the 5th lunar month. In China, legend says 传说说道that the festival commemorates纪念China’s patriotic poet, 爱国诗人Qu Yuan, who was Chu people in Warring States period 战国时期and drowned himself in 投河自尽the Miluo River. Because of people’s love for him, they tr ied to save him and jumped into their boats and searched 寻找the river for him. They also threw zongzi to the fish, hoping to keep them from eating 不让它们吃Qu Yuan’s body. The poet was never found, but is still remembered each Dragon Boat Festival. Today, People honor 纪念the festival by eating zongzi and watching or competing in 参加竞赛dragon boat races. Zongzi is glutinous rice wrapped in 被包在the bamboo leaves.粽叶Mid-Autumn FestivalThe Mid-autumn Festival falls on the 15th day of the 8th lunar month,which is a season when crops 庄稼and fruits are all ripe 成熟and weather is pleasant.宜人的In the Ming and Qing dynasties,朝代it grew to be 成为a major 重大的festival of China. It’s a time for the whole family to get together. Today people will enjoy the full moon 赏满月and eat moon cakes on that day. The cakes are stuffed with 充满了meat, eggs, melon seeds 果仁and so on. On that day, the moon looks extremely 极其的round, big and bright. In China, a full moon symbolizes reunion.标志着团圆On the Mid-autumn Festival, all family members or friends get together to eat moon cakes, thinking of 思念their relatives and friends, as the Chinese saying goes: on festive occasions more than ever we think of our dear ones far away. 每逢佳节倍思亲Double Ninth Day重阳节The Double Ninth Day falls on the 9th day of the 9th lunar month. According to traditional Chinese yin and yang theory, nine is a yang number; therefore it is also called Double Yang Festival. For some time in history, it was called Mountain-climbing Festival, or Zhuyu Festival, as there was a custom of climbing mountains and hanging on a herb草本植物called zhuyu on the door. In the old days, people believed that Zhuyu could avoid bad luck, and protect people from getting disease.辟邪祛病As early as in the West Han Dynasty, the practice of hanging zhuyu on the Double Ninth Day was popular, and it was considered good to people’s health and lead to longevity.长寿Nowadays, the Double Ninth Festival is fixed as the Elderly Day, on which activities are held to show respect and love to the elderly people. On last Double Ninth Day, my parents and I took my grandparents to the Yangtai Mountain and enjoyed the tea in Dajue Temple.Which traditional custom has been forgotten by people? Well, Kowtow is one of them. It is an old Chinese custom of touching the ground with one’s forehead额头as a sign of respect or submission服从/屈服. My grandparents told me that they used to Kowtow to their senior relatives during New Year’s Visit in order to get the Red-Envelope Money, but now we don’t need to do that anymore.Some customs on Chinese traditional wedding ceremony have been forgotten too. Because of western culture’s influence, gone forever are those days when we Chinese were obeying all the traditional customs, such as using sedan chair轿子to pick up the bride, havingarm-crossed drink,喝交杯酒groom wearing gown,长袍bride wearing red veiling.红盖头Bride and groom first bow to Heaven and Earth. 拜天地Then, they bow to their parents to show respect to their parents and ancestors.祖先At last they bow to each other to make sure they will love each other for ever. Here comes the time when Chinese wedding has been westernized被西化a lot: the bride wearing white bridal gown,白色婚纱exchanging rings, recording video and so on. Red Color in ChinaRed is the traditional Chinese symbol of happiness, success, and prosperity. 兴旺,繁荣And red is the dominant color显著的颜色at a traditional Chinese wedding. The whole family is covered with red paper-cuts of the Chinese character “double happiness”. The bride wears red flowers on head, red clothes, and red shoes.Western wedding ceremonyThe western wedding ceremony is usually held in the church. The priest牧师asks the bride and bridegroom in turn:轮流“Will you take this man/woman to be your lawfully wedded husband/wife?“合法丈夫/妻子The bride and bridegroom say “I will! ”. At t he end of the ceremony, the priest says:” I now pronounce宣布you husband and wife”, which means they are officially married. 正式结婚The wedding ceremony usually is followed by a wedding reception where a meal and wedding cake are served. |Tibetans’ outfit藏族人的服装Tibetans like to wear leather clothes and the clothes made of wool. Usually, these clothes are big and loose. They can be used as clothes during the day, and can also be used as quilts被子during the night. The sleeves are, normally, long and wide in order to make their arms move freely. Another reason is the weather conditions. In Tibet, the temperature goes up and down quickly during the day and the night. The Tibetans will take off one sleeve 袖子and tie it up at the waist 腰when it gets hot. When it gets cold, they will put on the sleeve again. So it is rather convenient.Customs of ethnic minorities少数民族China is a country with 56 nationalities, 民族among which Han nationality takes more than 90%, and the rest are the minority nationalities. 少数民族Different minority nationalities have different cultures and different customs.Water-Splashing Festival泼水节It is the New Year, as well as the most important traditional festival celebrated by the Dai nationality in Yunnan Province of China . It is usually between 13th and 15th April in solar calendar.阳历Upon that day, people splash water to each other, showing their sincere blessing真挚的祝福with splashing spray, wishing that they would be lucky and free from diseases.Torch Festival火把节It falls on the 24th day of the sixth lunar month, which is a traditional festival of the Yi, Bai, Na xi and some other minority nationalities. People gather together and participate in various activities, such as dancing and fireworks displaying. And it’s a good chance for young men and women to meet their prospective spouses. 未来的配偶They will gather around a big torch, singing and dancing through the night in the hope of prosperities繁荣in the coming year.The Mongolian people蒙古族人They are famous for horse-riding, wrestling, 摔跤singing and dancing.I have been to the Mongolian Aubao for dinner. The Mongolians showed their hospitality好客by singing beautiful songs to the guests during the meal.。
