Mandarin 12 CNY Flashcards
What are most of the important Chinese holidays based on?
the traditional Chinese lunar calendar
What is the name of the traditional Chinese lunar calendar?
阴历
yīn lì
How old is the Chinese lunar calendar (阴历) and what is it based on?
more than 4000 years based on the movement of the moon
How does the Chinese lunar calendar differ from the Gregorian calendar?
it is about a month later
What is the Gregorian calendar based on and what is it referred to as?
the movement of the sun and is referred to as the solar calendar
What are the 3 different Chinese names of the Gregorian calendar and why?
阳 历
yáng lì
夏 历
xià lì (because it was invented during XIa Dynasty)
农 历
nóng lì (agricultural calendar for farming use)
What is the formal name of Chinese New Year and what does it mean?
春 节
Spring Festival
When does Chinese New Year fall?
正月
(the first day of the first month)
but can also fall on any day about a month later on the regular calendar
What does 过年 mean (past and present)?
past (according to folklore): passing or surviving the Monster Nian
present: celebrating the Chinese New Year
What does 拜 (bài) 年 mean (past and present)?
past: worshipping or praying to the Monster Nian
present: loved ones visit each other and wish each other a happy Chinese New Year, can be used to wish anyone a happy Chinese New Year
What are the Chinese New Year’s main activities? (4)
- hang red couplets or posters
- light up firecrackers
- watch lion or dragon dances
- eat popular traditional Chinese food such as fish and 年糕 (sticky rice cake)
What is the popular idiom associated with fish?
年年有余
fish rhymes with “surplus”
What is the lucky meaning of 年糕?
going up higher each year, such as promotions or general personal improvement
糕 rhymes with 高 which means “tall, high, happy”
How is each year on the lunar calendar given a formal name?
by orderly combining one of the elements from the 10 Heavenly Stems 天干 with one of the elements of the 12 Earthly branches 地支(zhī)
How many years is an entire combination circle?
60
What was the formal name of last year?
戊 戌 年
wù xū nián
What is the formal name of this year?
己亥年
jǐ hài nián
What is combined to name each year in the folklore?
12 elements for the Earthly Branches and 12 Chinese Zodiacs, every year one of each is combined to give a NON-FORMAL name for the Chinese year
What is the name of the Lantern Festival
元 宵 节
yuán xiāo jié
When is the Lantern Festival and what does it mark the end of?
on the 15th of the first month
marks the end of the celebrations of the Chinese New Year
What do people usually eat on the day of the Lantern Festival?
a special kind of sweet round dumplings called
元宵 汤圆
yuán xiāo OR tāng yuán
What activities are done on the day of the Lantern festival other than eating 元宵/汤圆? (2)
- make all sorts of colourful lanterns
做灯笼
zuò dēng lóng - guess riddles
猜谜语
cāi mí yǔ
What is the popular saying about the Lantern Festival?
正月十五闹花灯
zhēng yuè shí wǔ nào huā dēng
(having fun with colourful lanterns on Jan 15th)
Why does the Spring Festival take place on a different day every year?
because it is based on the lunar calendar
What was the Spring Festival traditionally a time for?
to honour deities as well as ancestors
Where is the Lunar New Year celebrated?
most important holiday in Chinese culture around the world
Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Korea, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, the Philippines, each with their own unique traditions
What do all variations of centuries-old legends on the origins of Lunar New Year celebrations have?
- story of a terrible mythical monster, a lion-like monster named 年, who preyed on villagers
- a wise old man who counsels the villagers to ward off evil 年 by making loud noises with drums and firecrackers and by hanging red paper cutouts and scrolls on their doors because 年 is scared of the colour red
- villagers took the old man’s advice and 年 was conquered
How is the Lunar New Year celebrated? (7)
- lighting firecrackers
- watching traditional lion/dragon dance
- going to the temple fair
- visiting friends and relatives (拜年)
- giving red envelopes stuffed with “lucky money”
- pasting new scrolls (spring festival couplets)
- eating dumplings and other special foods
What are the 12 animal Zodiacs?
rat ox tiger rabbit dragon snake horse sheep monkey rooster dog pig
