Chinese Culture (Beginner Level)

1 新型冠状病毒 (Xīnxíng guānzhuàng bìngdú): Coronavirus /COVID-19
Example:
Kēxuéjiā men yǐ fēnlí chū yǐnqǐ zhè zhǒng liúxíng bìng de guānzhuàng bìngdú.
科学家们已分离出引起这种流行病的冠状病毒。                 
Scientists have isolated the coronavirus causing the epidemic.
 
2 口罩 (Kǒuzhào)：Mask, gauze mask
Example:
Nǐ chūmén yídìng yào dài kǒuzhào.
你出门一定要戴口罩。
You must wear a mask when you go out.
 
We suggest that you wear:
医用外科口罩 (Yīyòng wàikē kǒuzhào) surgical mask
or
N95口罩 (Kǒuzhào) N95 respirator
 
3 隔离 (Gélí): to ...

Li Ziqi is a famous Chinese blogger and YouTube personality specializing in videos depicting Chinese cuisine, Chinese traditional culture, as well as a simplistic and nature-oriented approach to living. Li Ziqi has been recognized by the Chinese government for sharing the intangible side of Chinese cultural heritage with the world and is adored by millions ...

Have you ever heard a Chinese tongue twister? You may have but not even realized it. A tongue twister is a type of oral literature, which is a unique form of language art in Chinese folk literature. It can help people exercise eloquence, correct pronunciation, as well as improve their Chinese speaking ability.
Upon first ...

Chinese traditional operas, of a long history and well established, are one of the cultural and artistic forms of the Chinese nation. These ancient types of drama are still active on China’s stages today. Of all the traditional types of drama, Peking Opera is the most influential. Emerging in Peking two hundred years ago and ...

You know Chinese Kung Fu because of movies, right? Chinese Kung Fu is so much more. It embodies China’s national wisdom and traditional culture in one very pure active art form. The main concepts of Kung Fu are moderation and harmony. Its artistic nature and require for discipline has influenced the entire world. Shaolin, Tai ...

Teaching Chinese culture and tradition is an essential part of teaching Mandarin Chinese. Not only are the words and phrases important, but learning about the lives of Chinese people adds a motivation to integrate and inspire my students to continue to pursue the language. Today, I’m going to introduce four traditional events that Chinese couples ...

It’s very likely you have heard of Mahjong before, you might have even played some version of it on the computer or your phone. Or, perhaps you saw the Chinese mafia in movies playing Mahjong. But, do you know its everyday significance in China?
麻将 (májiàng) Mahjong

Note: “将” has 3 different pronunciations: jiàng, qiāng, and ...

Key Learning Points (Preview):
粽子 (zòngzi) n. rice dumpling

庆祝 (qìngzhù) v. to celebrate

In the west, people "庆祝 (qìngzhù) celebrate" Easter Day in memory of Jesus. They eat Easter Eggs to commemorate this day. In China, people have a similar celebration of a heroic figure from ancient times on the Dragon Boat Festival. Instead of Easter Eggs, Chinese people ...

Have you ever heard of Chinese “糖画(tánghuà) sugar painting?” If not, check out the video below for a glimpse of this intricate, edible art!

Have you ever seen anything like what the artist makes in the video? Do you think the way “糖画(tánghuà)” is made is pretty amazing?
If you visit China, you might find that in ...

The “饿鬼节 (È Guĭ Jié) Hungry Ghost Festival” of Chinese Taoism is also the “盂兰节 (yú lán jié) Ullambana Festival” of Buddhism, commonly called “Ghost Festival鬼节 (guĭ jié) Ghost Festival“or “中元节 (zhōng yuán jié) Mid-July Festival.” It falls on the fifteenth of every lunar July. (In 2009, Hungry Ghost Festival will falls on ...