Category: Chinese customs

Yu Na 于娜 Born: Jun. 6, 1981 Height: 177CM Measurements: 84/62/88CM Yu Na was born in Guiyang, the capital city of Guizhou Province, and is a famous model-turned actress who appeared in Chinese TV hit series "How to rescue you, My love", "One Meter Sunlight", "Come Home" and many others. Yu won many local modeling contests, and was crowned New Silk Road Model Look China in 2000, making her a house-hold name overnight. In that same year, Yu was awarded the Best Asian Image Award at the 7th World Supermodel Contest held in France. Yu is well-known for her sweet smile and girl-next-door style.

The archaeological(related to or dealing with or devoted to archaeology) discoveries proved that archery in China dates back about 20,000 years. Practical archery takes three conditions: a bow strong enough to propel arrows, arrows that are sharp enough to kill, and a technique to ensure the stability of arrows in fight. The bow and arrow in ancient China fully met the three conditions. Archaeologists have unearthed finely made arrowheads in a site of the Paleolithic Age in Shanxi Province, and could be mounted on a shaft. No bow was found at the site, since bows were usually made of wood, bamboo and perhaps tendon of animals and could not remain intact for so many years. But the arrowheads(an arrowhead is the sharp, pointed part of an arrow) were enough to prove the existence of bows.

The Bökh, meaning Mongolian wrestling(蒙古式摔跤Ménggǔ shì shuāijiāo), is a traditional sport for Mongolian ethnic group in the China. Local people living in grassland(grassland is land covered with wild grass) regions call wrestling “Bökh”. Wrestling is the most important sport of Mongolian people’s "Three Manly Skills" (along with horsemanship and archery). “Bökh” is an indispensable(if you say that someone or something is indispensable, you mean that they are absolutely essential and other people or things cannot function without them) activity for important occasions like sacrificial rituals and the Nadam Festival.

Praying Mantis Boxing(螳螂拳tángláng quán) is one of the Chinese imitative boxing styles. It is said to have been created by Wang Lang, a Shandong native of Liang Dynasty under the Emperor Wu's rule. Inspired by the praying mantis' aggressiveness(an aggressive person or animal has a quality of anger and determination that makes them ready to attack other people) in its stalking of a cicada(a cicada is a large insect that lives in hot countries and makes a loud high-pitched noise), Wang Lang created the boxing based on Shaolin Long Boxing and taking a cue from the insect's quick and agile attacking movements with its front long legs.

Boat trackers(纤夫qiànfū) refer to those who track or row the boat for others and take it as a profession(a profession is a type of job that requires advanced education or training). When the carrying of a whole set of things such as coal, lumbers, agricultural and sideline products as well as daily commodities greatly relied on water transportation, boat trackers played a key role at that particular time.

Wu Guanzhong (1919-2010), born in Yixing of Jiangsu Province, was a prominent contemporary Chinese artist and art educator. He was the first living Chinese artist to have a solo show at the British Museum in 1992. He was skilled at painting various subjects including landscapes, waterscapes, figures, animals and plants.

Wu Changshuo (1844-1927), born in Anji County of Huzhou City, Zhejiang Province, was the key artist when Chinese painting transferred from modern painting to contemporary painting.