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Hello and welcome to our first Chinese Newsletter!
We are very excited to launch a new newsletter - filled with everything you want to know about the Chinese language and culture. In this newsletter, we review the Mid-Autumn Festival. Future newsletters will feature various subjects of the Chinese culture, traditions, art, philosophy, entertainment and more.
Each newsletter will contain fascinating information about China and the Chinese language, as well as Chinese words and phrases, for you to learn and memorize.
We hope you enjoy the Chinese Newsletter, and see you next time!
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The Mid-Autumn Festival was celebrated on the 15th day of the 8th lunar month, around the time of the autumnal equinox. Many referred to it as the "Fifteenth of the Eighth Moon".
This day was also considered as a harvest festival, since fruits, vegetables and grain had been harvested by this time and food was abundant. Food offerings were placed on an altar.
Apples, pears, peaches, grapes, pomegranates, melons, oranges and pomelos were seen. Special food for the festival included moon cakes, cooked taro and water caltrope, a type of water chestnut resembling black buffalo horns.
Some people insisted that cooked taro be included
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because at the time of creation, taro was the first food discovered at night in the moonlight.
The round moon cakes, measuring about three inches in diameter and one and a half inches in thickness, resembled Western fruitcakes in taste and consistency. These cakes were made with melon seeds, lotus seeds, almonds, minced meats, bean paste, orange peels and lard. A golden yolk from a salted duck egg was placed at the center of each cake, and the golden brown crust was decorated with symbols of the festival.
Traditionally, thirteen moon cakes were piled in a pyramid to symbolize the thirteen moons of a "complete year", that is, twelve moons plus one intercalary moon.
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The Mid-Autumn Festival is a traditional festivity for both the Han and minority nationalities. The custom of worshipping the moon can be traced back as far as the ancient Xia and Shang Dynasties (2000 B.C. - 1066 B.C.).
In the Zhou Dynasty(1066 B.C. - 221 B.C.), people hold ceremonies to greet winter and worship the moon whenever the Mid- Autumn Festival starts. The worship of the full moon became very prevalent in the Tang Dynasty(618 – 907 A.D.).
In the Southern Song Dynasty(1127 - 1279 A.D.), however, people sent round moon cakes to their relatives as gifts in expression of their best wishes of family reunion.
Since the Ming(1368 - 1644 A.D.)and Qing Dynasties(1644 – 1911 A.D.), the custom of Mid-Autumn Festival celebration became very popular. Special customs also
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appear in different parts of the country, such as burning incense, planting Mid-Autumn trees, lighting lanterns on towers and fire dragon dances.
The custom of playing under the moon is not as popular as it used to be, but it is still a common custom to enjoy the bright silver moon. When the festival starts, people look up at the full silver moon, drink wine to celebrate their happy life and extend best wishes to friends and relatives.
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Weekly Chinese Words |
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Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Mid - Autumn Festival
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| Transcription: |
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Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Autumnal Equinox
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Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Pomegranate
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Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Pomelo
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Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Cooked Taro
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Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Water Caltrope
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Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Lotus Seed
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Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Almod
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Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Lard
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Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Golden Yolk
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Part of Speech: Adjective
Meaning: Intercalary
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Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Lunar Calendar
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Weekly Chinese Phrases |
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Meaning: The custom of worshipping the moon
Topic: Custom
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Meaning: Worship the full moon
Topic: Custom
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Meaning: Family Reunion
Topic: Custom
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Meaning: Burn Incense
Topic: Custom
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Meaning: Light Lantern
Topic: Custom
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Meaning: Fire Dragon Dances
Topic: Custom
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Meaning: The custom of Mid - Autumn Festival
Topic: Custom
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Weekly Chinese Expression |
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Meaning: Happy Mid - Autumn Festival!
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