Category: Chinese customs

The Nanxin Village Puppet Play(南辛庄木偶戏Nánxīnzhuāng mùŏuxì) in Hejian City of Cangzhou, also called“Pushing Play”and “Elbow Play”, is a rare opera in Hebei. It was carried to Nanxin Village from Guo Village in Xijiiuji County in the 29th year (1601) of Wanli in the Ming.

On the basis of Annuals of Cang County(沧县Cāngxiàn), records and folklore, Cang County Lion Dance goes back to the Ming Dynasty. And it is very popular all over the country since it is ardent, vivid and naughty. Some of the lions’heads are pasted by papers, while others’eyes are made of iron sheets. Whatever the kind is, the lion’s head is an appearance of violence. Their eyes are wide open, their mouths are big and frightening and their tongues are out of the mouth. The lion’s body is woven by the linen that is dyed red, green and yellow and fixed on a piece of yellow cloth with ropes. There is a big cloth ball that is linked with a spring on the back of the lion. So when the lion walk, the cloth ball trembles at the same time. The lion’s tail is also made of linen and upward. There are also a string of bells colored silk on the lion’s head.

Nuo dance(傩舞Nuówǔ), a Maonan(毛南族Máonán Zú) folk art tradition, is considered a treasure of the ethnic group. The dancers wear wooden masks while performing the traditional and special dance. Each mask, about 30 cm high and 20 cm wide, is designed based on characters from Maonan oral literature.

The Dragon Drum(龙鼓lónggǔ) is popular in the countryside of Jinzhou, Shijiazhuang City. According to the historical records, it was called“Ya Drum”in the Yuan. When it was performed, the drum is carried on the performer’s waist, hanging between the legs. So it is also called“carried drum”. The performers mostly dressed up as warriors in order to show the soldierly, manly(it shows qualities that are considered typical of a man, such as strength or courage) and hefty(large in size, weight, or amount) feelings.

The Gaoyi Waist-hold Drum(高邑腰鼓Gāoyì yāogǔ)originated from the 1950s, which is the new art form produced in the process of the Northern Shaanxi waist-hold spreading throughout the country, and through 50 years of improvement and development. It has become a kind of vivid, special fold art with local flavor. Gaoyi Waist-hold Drum is originally the accompany instrument of giant war drum in the same position as cymbal etc. Some other folk musical instrument, shown on the stage with the big yangko during sacrificial and celebration activities. In the 1960s, Gaoyi Waist-hold Drum was formally separated from the bass drum and yangko and lifted to the main position whose accompaniment is the cymbal.

剪纸是中国最为流行的传统民间艺术形式之一。中国剪纸有一千五百多年的历史，在明朝和清朝时期特别流行。人们常用剪纸梅花居家环境，特别是在春节和婚庆期间，剪纸被用来装饰门窗和房间，以增加喜庆的气氛。剪纸最常用的颜色是红色，象征健康和兴旺。中国剪纸在世界各地很受欢迎，经常被用作馈赠外国友人的礼物。

As an informal greeting, Chinese people like to use " chī le ma（吃了吗,  chī le ma） ?" — which means "have you eaten yet?" — when it is the time for a meal. Foreigners who don’t understand this kind of custom might regard this as an invitation to have a meal together. However, this is just a simple greeting, not a real invitation, so can reply with " chī le（吃了, chī le） " or " méi ne（没呢, méi ne） " which means "yes, I have eaten" or "no, not yet."