Traditional Female Costume in the Chinese History

Because of the long history, there were different kinds of Chinese traditional costumes that appeared in different periods in China. Today, I want to introduce three female traditional costume styles.

Han Chinese Costume
Han Chinese Costume played an important role in the Chinese history, it began in 2698 BC and ended in 1650s AD, which had existed for more than 4,000 years.

Due to its long history, Han Chinese Costumes have different styles on design. The common features are alternating collar, overlapping part and lacing. A Han Costume consists of underclothes, inner dress and pants, and robe.

The pictures below show different kinds of Han Costume for females. 

The three styles, especially the middle one, were for the females who had got married.

The four styles were popluar in girls who had not married yet.

Manchu Attire
Manchu attire is women's dress for Man nationality. Man is a minority in China. After Man controlled the whole nation after 1650s. Manchu attire boarded the stage.

The common features of Manchu attire are round collar, narrow cuff, rightward front, and slit skirt.

However, dressing Manchu attire is a symbol of high status in the Qing Dynasty, because such a kind of costume belongs to the upper class. Only dowagers could own it. 

The last empress in the Qing Dynasty—Empress Wanrong, who dressed in Manchu attire.

Cheongsam
Cheongsam originated in 1920s and was popular among Chinese females in 1930s. It was a female clothing style after 1920s.

The common features of cheongsam are stand-up collar, rightward front, narrow waist, and slit skirt.

The last emperor and empress—Emperor Puyi and Empress Wangrong. Wangrong dressed in cheongsam who looked elegant.

Cheongsam was popular during 1920s-1930s. Women dressed in cheongsam usually appeared in commercials.

A Chinese female who is in cheongsam always looks more attractive.

Cheongsam now has become a symbol of Chinese women. And the most Chinese females love to wear Cheongsam during their weddings.

Actually, there were more than three kinds of traditional costumes in Chinese history, they all played important roles, and each of them was related to the culture, economy and politics in their separated periods.
   

Qixi Festival

The seventh evening of the seventh month in Chinese lunar calendar, is a Chinese traditional festival, which is called "Qixi". It is the most romantic festival in China because this festival is considered as the "Chinese Valentine's Day."

There is a story about the festival. It is one of the four folklore in China, as well as the earliest and the most popular among the four, which plays an important role in Chinese folkloric history.

Long long ago, there was a boy called Niulang, whose parents passed away when he was a little baby. He had a elder brother and a sister-in-law, who always abused Niulang. Niulang had nothing but an old ox. He took good care of the ox.

One day, the ox began to speak, which surprised the boy. The ox originally was a mythical animal from Heaven. The ox told Niulang that the boy's wife who was called Zhinu would come to the little village several days later. The ox taught him how to marry the girl. According to the ox's instructions, the boy fell in love with the girl and got married.

The couple led a happy life and had two cute kids. During this period, the old ox died. Before it was dead, the ox told Niulang to keep its skin after its death because it would help him someday. The couple were very sad about its death.

One day when Niulang went out for farming, something unfortunate happened. His wife, Zhinu, actually was the adored daughter of the Queen Mother in Heaven. The Queen Mother was super angry to find out that her youngest daughter had married a boy on the earth. Therefore, she came to their house and took Zhinu away by force.

When Niulang went back home, only finding the kids were crying in the house. After realizing what had happened from his kids, Niulang remembered the ox's skin. He found it out and put it on, he could fly at once. The Queen Mother found Niulang run after them, she took off her hair clasp and made a slash in the sky, the Milk Way appeared between them and Niulang, Niulang could not cross the Milk Way any more. He and Zhinu were separated.

After came back to Heaven, Zhinu could do nothing but teared everyday. Finding that Zhinu was heart-broken , the Emperor of Heaven and Queen Mother decided to let the couple cross the Milky Way to meet once a year, the day was just the seventh evening of the seventh month in Chinese lunar calendar.

On that day, all magpies, which are supposed to be the lucky birds in China, will fly to the Milk Way and build a bridge for the couple's meeting. It is said that, in the evening of Qixi Festival, people could hear the couple's honeyed words while standing under grape trellis.

 Niulang, Zhinu, the Ox and Magpies

It is only a myth, however, each year on that day, especially in the past, girls prayed to Zhinu to have a happy marriage because a good marriage was so important for a girl who lived in old times in China. Today, since it has been the "Chinese Valentine's Day", it becomes a celebration for couples.

Culture, Culture, Different Cultures...

Because the topic of my blog is mainly about Chinese culture, I interviewed a Chinese professor who declined to be named. Due to the fact that usually the professor is extremely busy, there were just three questions to be asked. The professor was very nice and gave me satisfying answers.

Question 1--Do you and your family celebrate any Chinese festivals in America? 

Yes, we do celebrate major Chinese holidays such as 春节(the Spring Festival), 元宵节(Lantern Festival), 中秋节(the Mid-Autumn Day). We do this to keep our tradition and maintain our cultural identity.

Comments: The festivals mentioned above are three very important and traditional festivals in China. The Spring Festival is the biggest Chinese festival, another way of saying it is "the Chinese New Year", which is much more important than New year's Day—January 1 of each year. The Lantern Festival, is the fifteenth day after the Spring Festival, it is the sign that the Spring Festival of this year is over. The Mid-Autumn Day is important because family members must get together on that day.

Question 2--Did you feel any culture shock when you came to America for the first time? If so, would you please share your experiences with us?
 
Several weeks after arriving in the States, I went to a garage. An American worker greeted my by saying "Hello, my friend." I felt very surprised if not shocked because Chinese people never call a stranger "friend." 

Comments: The reason why I asked this question is because everyone who goes to another country for the first time must feel some culture shocks. The first day that I came to America was Sunday. I walked to Target in order to purchase something necessary. However, the store was closed. It never happens in China, because people have more spare time on holidays. Even though the business hours may be shorter than usual, all the public stores are open on holidays. 


Question 3--For those people who are born and raised in their motherland, do you think it is a little difficult for them to adapt themselves to a new national culture when they are twenties or older? 

Yes, it is hard, if not impossible, for an adult (like me) to adapt him to a new country. No matter how long I have lived in the States, I still behave in a Chinese way and cannot shake off the impact of Chinese culture on me. Yet, I become much more conscious of the positive and negative characteristics of Chinese culture and appreciate and adopt some values of American culture. So, I am no longer the man before coming to the Sates.

Comments: Why I ask the question is because I came to the States on my twenties, and I find that there is a little difficult to adapt myself to American culture. Since I had accepted Chinese education for more than twenty years, I have a different background from my American classmates'. We have different educational and cultural background, we watched different cartons when we were kids, we are interested in different TV programs now, we talk about and love different idols. All the things are due to the differences between Eastern cultures and Western cultures. We can learn and realize another kind of culture, however, it cannot replace our own culture.

Panda

Panda, whose scientific name is Ailuropoda, is one of the most rare animals both in China and around the world. The panda has been listed as one of the first nationally protected animals in China and it is known as the national treasure of China.

At the very beginning, pandas were flesh-eating animals. With the sudden increase of population, however, pandas were forced to migrate to alpine areas. In order to avoid the competitions with the carnivorous animals there, such as black bears, pandas began to be accustomed to taking bamboos as their staple food.

World Wildlife Fund for Nature (WWF) took panda as the organization's symbol when it was founded in 1961. There is no doubt that the panda has begun the most important symbol of species conservation. For China, in addition, the panda is also considered as an important representative to promote good will in diplomatic relations.

The video below is about the baby panda which was born in San Diego Zoo. Usually, in law, those baby pandas that are not born in China should be sent back to China. 

The following video is about the process of how a newborn baby panda grows up. It is incredible.

 
Padans are so cute that I am extremely eager for having one someday.

How to Make Dumplings

Dumplings are one of the traditional foods in China, people, especially those who live in North China, not only have dumplings in festivals, but also take them as a staple in daily life. 
 
Today, let's learn how to make dumplings.
 
Generally speaking, people prefer to make dumpling wrappers by themselves with flour and water, however, to a beginner, buying dumpling wrappers in super market is a good choice because making dumpling wrappers manually is a complex process to a beginner.
 
Now, let's make sure what kinds of materials we shall prepare.
1、Dumpling wrappers
2、Stuffing, including meat and vegetable
3、Soy sauce, salt, cooking wine, spice powder, sesame oil, cool water

Now, let's start!
 
First, choose your favorite meat and vegetable, each one should be a half pound, and chop up both of them.
 

Vegetable

Meat

Second, put them in a big container, add one tsp of salt, ten tsp of soy sauce, one tsp of spice powder, three tsp of sesame oil, and five tsp of cool water.

Put all the stuff together

Third, stir the stuff in one direction for five minutes.

 Stuffing

Fourth, hold a dumpling wrapper, put one tsp of stuffing in the middle of the dumpling wrapper, double up it and wrap up the stuffing.
 

The process of wrapping up the stuffing

Fifth, finish making dumplings with the same process explained above.
 
Sixth, boil a pan of water.
 
Seventh, put the dumplings into the boiling water carefully.
 
Eighth, add cool water three times after the pan of dumplings is boiling again.
 
Ninth, turn off the fire, dish up the dumplings.
 

Tenth, make your favorite sauce for the dumplings, such as soy sauce, vinegar, and chili sauce.

How yummy! What are we waiting for? Le's get started!

Peking Opera

Peking Opera grew up in Beijing around 1840, was popular in 1930s and 1940s, and it is the national opera in China.

Because women could not get publicity in old times in China, female roles, which is called "Dan" in Peking Opera, were acted by males. Mei Lanfang, name of a very famous Peking Opera artist, is acknowledged to be a master of Peking Opera and was one of the four famous Dans in Peking Opera at the time of 1940s.

Mei Lanfang

A still of Mei Lanfang

Facial makeup plays an important role in Peking Opera, and it is one of the essential labels of Peking Opera. Facial makeup is only for male roles. Different types of facial makeup stand for different roles, characters and fates, and they can help audience understand the story of a opera.

Colors of Faces             Nature               Characters                 Roles 
Red                               Positive              Loyal, Brave 
Black                            Neutral                Bold
Blue & Green                 Neutral                                                Gallant Outlaw
Yellow & White              Negative             Evil
Golden & Silver              Mysterious                                          God, Demon

Different kinds of Facial Makeup

 
With the quickening pace of modern life , more and more young people are no longer very hot on Peking Opera. However, a young artist named Li Yugang, who acts as a Dan in Peking Opera, has opened a new chapter for the Peking Opera. He combines fashionable elements to Peking Opera and creates a unique style of singing. 

The Drunken Beauty  is one of the most famous episodes in Peking Opera. The following video shows a traditional style of acting. Audience who are not familiar with or lack of basic knowledge about Peking Opera will find these kinds of operas super boring.

However, Li Yugang creates a new acting style. The vedio below, which is named The New of The Drunken Beauty, is the creation of Li Yugang.

 

Not only does Li Yugang bring fashionable elements to Peking Opera, but he also performs popular songs with a Peking Opera style. The video called One Night in Beijing is a great example.

The Original of  One Night in Beijing

Li Yugang's One Night in Beijing

Because of Li Yugang, a great many of young people begin to pay close attention to and love Peking Opera. What Li Yugang done has made great contributions to the development of Peking Opera.

Famous Foods in Chengdu

Chengdu is the capital of Sichuan Province in southwestern China. The city is famous of its laid-back way of living due to its local landscapes and snacks. The local flavor snacks in Chengdu are super popular in China because of the gamey characters and great varieties, such as, wonton, chow mein, brawn, confiture, pastry, etc., more than 200 kinds of foods consist of the unique local snacks. 

 
The video records Andrew's trip of visiting different famous snack bars in Chengdu. 

 
The eight snacks listed below are super famous in Chengdu, as well as in China, which are also appeared in the video.

Chen Mapo Tofu
Chen Mapo Tofu is a famous shop named by the country. It opened in 1862. Because the color of the tofu is ruddy and the beef shreds is crispy, it had be a namable food since the end of the Qing Dynasty. 

Chen Mapo Tofu

Shuangliu Rabbit Head

The shop opened in 2003 and has a eight-year history. This snack sounds terrible, however, the characters of the food are hot and spicy, and it is very popular.

Sliced Lungs
It is said that a couple made this snack with ox's lungs in 1930s and many people loved it. After the shop was founded, the materials was changed with beef, tripe and oxtongue.  

Sliced Lungs

Spiced Griskin
It has a 100-year length of history. Because of its high requirements during the process, spiced griskin stands in top in the field of pot-stewed dishes.

Dan-dan Noodle
Dan-dan Noodle is a famous foodstuff in Chengdu. Here is the process of making it. Roll flour into noodle, boil the noodle, and combine it with saute minced pork. It seems very simple, but more simple means more difficult.

Dan-dan Noodle

Wonton
The wonton in Chengdu is another very famous food. Its main characteristics are the thin skin, crispy minced meat and delicious soup.

Wonton

Zhong Dumplings
Contrasted with the dumplings in north China, Zhong dumplings are made with chopped pork and without any vegetables. Its taste is hot and spicy, as well as a little sweet. 

Jelly
It is produced in the end of Qing Dynasty. It tastes cooling and delicious.

Jelly 

There are hundreds kinds of foods in Chengdu, and they are so famous and popular that a great many tourists go to Chengdu just for their favorite foods every year. It is amazing and unbelievable, but it is ture.

Winter Solstice

Winter Solstice was the earliest solar term that was worked out in ancient China, and its date changes among 21，22 and 23 December due to the Sun and the Earth. Winter Solstice is the day that has the shortest daytime and the longest dark hours among a year. 

In China, people in the north prefer to have dumplings while other areas have different foods for the solar term. Now, let's have a look at different customs in different regions in China.

Natives in Suzhou——have wonton due to the memory of Xishi

Suzhou was the capital of Wu 2,500 years ago. The beauty, Xishi, played an important role in the battle between Wu and Yue. The food, wonton, was made by Xishi for the King of Wu in winter solstice, and it was named by Xishi. The meaning of the name was an metaphor, which referred to the stupid King. Because Yue won the war under the help of Xishi, people in this region began to have wonton in winter solstice in order to the memory of Xishi.

Wonton

Natives in Ningxia——have "tounao"

The custom for Winter Solstice in Ningxia is to have a kind of soup, which is made of mutton and rice noodle. People call it by a strange name: tounao, which means the head.

Nativies in Chaoshan——ancestor worship, have sweet bolls and visit graves

On the of winter solstice, people in Chaoshan prepare enough pork, chickens, fishes and fruits and go to ancestral halls for ancestor worship. Generally speaking, the ceremony finishes before lunch, and family members get together for lunch, sweet balls is one of the delicious food.

Visiting graves is another activity in Chaoshan in winter solstice. In general, people usually visit graves in Qingming Festival, however, because of the better weather in winter solstice, people in Chaoshan prefer the latter day. 

Natives in Yunnan, Guizhou and Sichuan Province——have mutton and mutton soup

On the day of winter solstice, people in this region always like to enjoy something delicious. They have mutton and mutton soup in order to keep warm and to hope "good luck" during coming year.

Mutton soup

Winter Solstice is important in China, even though the Chinese people who live abroad still celebrate the festival every year and keep these customs.

Chinese Calligraphy

Chinese calligraphy is an old art of writing Chinese characters with writing brushes. There exist nine different kinds of Chinese calligraphy on the way of its development, there are: oracle bone script, stone script, Chinese Bronze inscriptions，large seal script, small seal script, clerical script, cursive script, regular script,and semi-cursive script. 

Chinese calligraphy is an unique kind of visual art and Chinese characters play important roles in it, because contrast to other kinds of calligraphies, Chinese characters is the essential symbol of Chinese calligraphy.

The process of learning Chinese calligraphy can be divided into four steps.

The first step is tracing. That is, use a semitransparent paper to cover over the originals and trace them.

 

The second step is copying. That is, practice writing original forms of characters from a copybook of calligraphy on other papers.

The third step is writing from memory. That is, close the copybook of calligraphy and practice writing original forms of characters from memory.

The last but not least step is creation. That is, create your own calligraphy works based on the former three steps.

The four steps above seem simple, however, it is a very long process, as well as difficult. I once had learned Chinese calligraphy for almost eight years since I was five years old, and I am good at small seal script, clerical script, regular script,and semi-cursive script.The following works that I once learned are completely famous in the history of Chinese calligraphy.

Stele of Cao Quan is typical of clerical script.

This work is called Preface to the Orchid Pavilion Collection. It looks really elegant and it is the number one in the field of semi-cursive script. Unfortunately, it is a copy, the original work had been an emperor's funeral object in Tang Dynasty.