中国文化常识翻译

中国文化常识

Chinese Cultural Common Sense

概述

中华民族是一个古老的民族，也是一个有深厚文化底蕴的民族。中国的传统艺术门类繁多、雅俗共赏，从悠扬动人的民间音乐到细腻缠绵的地方戏曲，从疏洁淡雅的水墨画到刚柔并济的书法，无不闪烁着智慧之光，令人赞叹不已。

Summarize

The Chinese nation is an ancient nation with profound culture deposits. The Chinese traditional culture owns a great varieties; it suits both refined and popular tastes, from the melodious and touching folk music to the exquisite and lingering local operas, from the simple and elegant wash painting to the calligraphies with both hardness and softness, all of them are sparkling with wisdom, which makes people deeply admired.

舞狮

舞狮大约起源于南北朝时期，到了唐朝，狮子舞已发展为上百人集体表演的大型歌舞。

舞狮在中国是一项传统体育项目，也是一种传统文化艺术，从北方到南方，从城市到乡村，逢年过节及庆典盛事，都可以看到欢快的舞狮。民间认为舞狮可以很好地把百姓的欢喜心情表达出来，也最能烘托热闹气氛。舞狮尤以广东地区一带最为盛行。用来舞动的狮子外形威武，动作刚劲，神态多变，广东人称它为“醒狮”。

中国百姓对狮子有图腾般的崇敬感，狮子在民间有很多传说，其位置仅次于龙，因此舞狮也就带有了不少神秘色彩。人们相信狮子是吉祥瑞兽，而舞狮能够带来好运，所以每逢节日和喜庆活动，都会舞狮助兴，祈求吉利和如意。专用于节庆场合纳福迎祥的舞狮，代代相传，从古代民间传统的娱乐活动，发展成为具有健身功能的体育运动。舞龙和舞狮的热闹场面在中国的电影中也是很常见的。

The lion dance

The lion dance originated in the Northern and Southern Dynasties and developed into large-scale singing and dancing collective performance by hundreds of people in the Tang Dynasty.

In China, the lion dance is a traditional sporting event both and a traditional culture and art. From north to south, from cities to countries, people can enjoy the cheerful lion dance on New Year’s Day and on other festivals and celebrations. Folk

people think that the lion dance can express their feelings and joy; it can also set off the lively atmosphere. Around the Guangdong area is the lion dance most popular, the lion which being waved has dignified appearance, vigorous movements and changeable expressions, Cantonese call it “Dancing Lion film”.

Chinese people have sense of respect to the lion’s totem. There’re lots of folk legends about lions, and the statute of lion ranks only second to dragon. Therefore, the lion dance is gifted with mysterious colors. People believe that the lion is the beast with auspiciousness and the lion dance can bring people luck. For this reason, the lion dance plays an important role at official celebrations and happy events to summon luck and fortune. The lion dance which is exclusively used in the festival activities to welcome the auspicious sign and propitious omen has been handed down from age to age. It was developed from the ancient folk amusement to the sport activity with function of fitness. The lively scenes of the dragon and lion dance are also common to see in the Chinese film.

吉祥图案

中国民间，流传着许多含有吉祥意义的图案。每到年节或喜庆的日子，人们都喜欢用这些吉祥图案装饰自己的房间和物品，以表示对幸福生活的向往，对良辰佳节的庆贺。

中国的吉祥图案始于距今3000多年前的周代，后来在民间流传开来。今天，吉祥图案任然是中国人生活中不可缺少的内容。

中国的吉祥图案内容及其广泛，这里介绍最常见的几种：：“双喜”字，是双喜临门，大吉大利的意思，民间常在办喜事时采用。

“寿”字，字头经过加工美化，变成对称的图案，是长寿的意思。“福寿双全”，是由蝙蝠和寿字组成的图案。“蝠”与“福”同音。表示幸福长寿。

两个“有”字组成的对称图案，意思是顺也有，倒也有。在中国农村常用来贴在收藏谷物的器具上，表示丰收富裕。“百吉”，也叫“盘长”。它无头无尾，无始无终，可以想象为许多个“结”，谐“百吉”之音，作为百事吉祥如意的象征，也有福寿延绵，永无休止的意思。“五福捧寿”，图案中5个蝙蝠环绕一个寿字。五福是长寿、富贵、康宁、道德、善终。“四合如意”，4个如意从四面围拢勾连起来，象征诸事如意。

Auspicious patterns

In the Chinese folk, lots of auspicious patterns have been spread. On festivals and happy occasions, Chinese people like to decorate rooms and personal items with these auspicious Chinese patterns, which could represent the aspiration to happy life and celebration with good days and festivals.

The Chinese auspicious patterns originated in the Zhou Dynasty, more than 3000 years ago. They became later very popular in the folk. Today, they still remain an indispensible part in our life.

Auspicious Chinese patterns are rich in content. The most common patterns include: the character of “double happiness”, which indicates two events occurring at the same time and big fortune and great profit. It often used by folk people when they prepare for a happy occasion.

By means of processing and beautifying, the upper half part of the character “longevity’turns to a symmetrical pattern, which means “lives a long life’. The patterns of the characters of “longevity” and bats (homonym to fu—happiness) are used to wish someone a happy life and long life.

The symmetrical pattern composed of two characters “you” (has the meaning of owning) means surplus in both clockwise and anticlockwise order. In the Chinese country, people often stick this pattern on the ware which for storing grain. It indicates good harvest and prosperous. The pattern “Bai ji” (hundred lucky things) also called “ Pan Chang”(auspicious knot). Without head or tail, beginning and end, this pattern implies countless knots. It has the same pronounce as “ Bai ji”, which symbolizes good luck in everything, also unlimited happiness and longevity. “Wu fu peng shou”: The pattern of the character “longevity” surrounded by five bats, which indicates five happy lots—a long life, riches and honor, good healthy and stability, good morals and a happy ending. “Si he ru yi”(Jade scepter): Four jade scepters link with each other from four sides, this pattern symbolizes ”may all go well with you’. .

小孩儿满月与抓周

在中国，小孩儿的满月酒和抓周仪式独具特色。在孩子的成长过程中，这两个仪式有里程碑式的纪念意义。

小孩儿出生满一个月的那天，孩子的家人一般要招呼亲朋挚友，邀请他们一起来庆祝孩子满月。按照中国的传统，这一天，家里会充满了喜庆和节日的氛围，满月酒要办得热热闹闹才行。不过最近这些年，这个习俗在城市尤其是年轻夫妇中有逐渐被淡化的趋势。但是，小孩儿满月对于每个家庭来说，任然都是一个非常值得纪念的高兴的日子。

“抓周儿”中的在“周”是小孩儿满一周岁的意思。关于：“抓周儿”，最早记载于北齐。“抓周儿”也就是在小孩儿满周岁那天，吃中午的长寿面之前，摆上经书、笔、墨、纸、砚、算盘、钱币、账册、首饰、花朵、胭脂、吃食、玩具等，如果是女孩儿则要加摆铲子、勺子（炊具）、剪子、尺子（缝纫用具）、绣线、花样子（刺绣用具），再由大人将小孩抱来，令其端坐，父母及他人不给予任何的引导或暗示，任孩子随意挑选，看他先抓什么，后抓什么，并以此为依据来预测孩子可能存在的志趣和将从事的职业以及前途。

One-Month-Old Feast and One-Year-Old Catch (zhuazhou) of babies

In China, One-Month-Old Feast and One-Year-Old Catch of a baby have unique characteristics. These two ceremonies have significance as milestone in the growing process of a baby.

On the day when a baby is one month old, the family of the baby will invite their friends and relatives to a ceremony to celebrate the occasion together. In a traditional One-Month-Old Ceremony, there will be a rejoicing and festive atmosphere in the family and the feast is supposed to be lively and joyful. However, in recent years this custom has been gradually abandoned in the cities, particularly among young couple. Nevertheless, One-Month-Old Feast still remains a memorable and happy moment for every family.

“Zhou” in the word “zhuazhou”means a baby is one year old. The earliest historical record about zhuazhou appeared during the Dynasty of Northern Qi. On the day when a baby is one year old, the family of the baby will lay out sutras, brush pens, ink sticks, paper, ink slabs, abacus, copper coins, account books, jewelries, flowers, rouges, foods, toys, etc. For girls, shovels, scoops(cooker), scissors,

rulers(sewing kit),needlework, scissor-cut will be added. The parents then put the baby in front of these things and make it sit up .Nobody will give an instruction or cue to the baby so that it is left free to choose by itself. Watching the baby catch the articles it likes and according the sequencing, the family can then make predictions about its potential interests, future career and development.

文房四宝

自古以来，人们写字作画离不开纸、墨、笔、砚。这四种文具被称为“文房四宝”。

中国文房四宝的品种十分丰富。其中最著名的是宣纸，徽墨，湖笔和端砚。纸宣纸是一种名贵的纸张，早在唐代，就已经作为贡品献给皇帝。由于这种纸的产地在安徽省的宣城附近，所以被人们称为“宣纸”。宣纸洁白、细密、均匀、柔软，拉力大，吸水性强，墨色一落到纸上，就能很快渗透，最能表现出中国书法和绘画的特点。由于宣纸存放很长时间都不会破碎、变色，也不易被虫蛀，所以，很多中国古代的宣纸字画保存了几百年、上千年，仍然完好无损。

墨历代的中国书画家对用墨都十分讲究。安徽徽州生产的徽墨是中国最好的墨。徽墨从唐朝开始生产，到现在已经有1000多年的历史。由于制作徽墨的原料中加入了名贵的中药和香料，有的还加入了黄金，所以，这种墨不但色泽黑润，而且香气浓郁，保存几十年后仍然可以使用。

笔文房四宝中的笔指毛笔。毛笔的生产和使用可以追溯到几千年以前。毛

笔的原料主要是兽毛和竹管。制作一只好的毛笔要经过70多道工序，制笔工人们要从千千万万根羊毛、兔毛、黄鼠狼毛中一根一根地挑选，然后进行搭配组合，才能制成优质的毛笔。中国最有名的毛笔是浙江湖州生产的湖笔。湖笔有200多种，是中国文房四宝中的珍品。

砚砚是研墨的工具，在中国已有3000多年的历史。端砚、歙砚、洮河砚、澄泥砚并称中国四大名砚。其中最著名的是端砚，由广东省肇庆市端溪出产的端石制成。端砚出墨快，墨汁不易干燥结冰。端砚不但是名贵的工艺品，还是献给皇帝的贡品。

纸、墨、笔、砚对中国文化和传统书画艺术的发展起到了非常重要的作用，一直到今天，人们仍称它们为“文房四宝“。

The Four Treasures of Study

From ancient times till now, people rely on paper, inks-stick, brush and ink stone when they write and paint. People call these four stationeries “the Four Treasures of Study’’.

The Chinese four treasures of study owns numerous varieties. The most famous sorts of them are Xuan paper, Hui ink-stick, Hu brush and Duan ink stone. Paper: The Xuan paper is a kind of precious papers. As early as in Tang Dynasty, Xuan paper had been already presented as tribute to the emperor. Because of its source area is near Xuan city in the Anhui Province, people call it Xuan paper. The features of Xuan paper are pure white, fine, uniform, soft and stretchy, it has also good hydroscopicity. As soon as the ink drop on the Xuan paper, it permeate the paper immediately. This character can reflect the feature of Chinese calligraphies and paintings. Xuan paper can be deposited for a long time and will not be broken or color-changed, neither be damaged by worms. As a result, many Chinese ancient scripts and paintings can last for hundreds or thousands years without breakages.

Link-stick: In all ages, Chinese calligraphers and painters pay lot attention to the use of ink-stick. The best Chinese ink-stick, Hui ink-stick comes from Huizhou in Anhui Province. People began to produce Hui ink-stick more than one thousand year ago, since Tang Dynasty. Hui ink-stick mainly comprises of precious traditional Chinese medicine and spice, sometimes gold is also been added. Account of its ingredients, Hui ink-stick has not only bright black luster, but also an exquisite fragrance. After several decades, it could also be used.

Brush: The pan of the Chinese four treasures of study indicates brush. The produce and use of brush can be traced back to thousands years ago. The main materials of brush are fur and bamboo drain. People need to get through more than

70 processes to produce a brush of good quality. The workers, who produce brushes, need to select furs from tens of thousands furs of sheep, rabbits and yellow weasels. After that they collocate and combine these furs, complete these selected brushes finally.

The most famous bush in China is the Hu brush comes from Huzhou in Zhejiang Province. Hu brush has more than 200 sorts and is the gem among the Chinese four treasures of study.

Ink stone: Ink stone is used for grinding ink and has more than 3000 years history in China. Duan ink stone, She ink stone, Taohe ink stone and Chengni ink stone are regard as “four famous ink stones” in China. The most famous among them is Duan ink stone, which made by the Duan stone from Duanxi in Zhaoqing city in Guangdong Province. Duan ink stone produces ink quickly and the ink is difficult to dry or freeze. Duan ink stone is not only precious artwork, but also the tribute offered to the emperor.

Paper, inks-stick, brush and ink stone play an important role in the development

of Chinese culture and traditional art of painting and calligraphy, to this day, they’re still called as the four treasures of study by people.

丝绸

中国是最早生产丝绸的国家。传说是黄帝的妻子嫘祖发明了养蚕、缫丝和织绸的技术。考古学家们认为，中国的桑蚕丝织技术，至少有4000多年的历史。丝绸很早就成了古代宫廷贵族的主要衣料和对外贸易的重要商品。

中国古代丝绸品种丰富多彩。自从2000多年以前，汉代著名的外交家张骞打通了通往欧洲、西亚许多地区的“丝绸之路”，华美的中国丝绸就开始源源不断地输往欧洲和西亚各国。西方人十分喜爱中国丝绸，据说，公元一世纪，一位古罗马皇帝曾穿着中国的丝绸袍去看戏，顿时轰动了整个剧场。从此，人们都希望能穿上中国的丝绸衣服，中国也因此被称为“丝国”。

丝绸美化了人们的生活，也促进了中国和世界各国的友好往来。

Silk

China is the earliest country to have produced silk. According to the legendary, the wife of Yellow Emperor, Lei Zu had invented the technology of breeding silkworms, spinning and weaving. Archaeologists believe the technology of silk weaving has at least a history of more than 4,000 years. Silk had been the main materials to make clothes for the noblemen and their families as well as an important commodity for export since long ago.

There are various kinds of ancient Chinese silk. More than 2000 years ago ,as early as the Han Dynasty, Zhangqian, a famous diplomat of the time, opened up a Silk Road leading to Western Asia and Europe. Since then, the delicate silks are being

continuously transported to those countries. Westerners were very fond of Chinese silk. It is said that during the first century AD, a Roman emperor went the theatre wearing silk, which made a great sensation among the audience. Since then, people wished to wear clothes made of Chinese silk. China, therefore, was called the "Silk Country".

Silk has beautified people's life and promoted friendly exchanges between China and other countries.

扇子

扇子是人们消暑纳凉的工具。在炎热的夏季，它能给人带来阵阵清凉。自古以来，中国的扇子就带着艺术品的风韵，具有独特的民族风格。

大约在3000多年前的商周时期，中国就有扇子了。中国扇子的种类非常多，有纸扇、绢扇、葵扇、羽毛扇、竹编扇等。扇子的形状也有方有圆，还有梅花、海棠、葵花等形状。

在扇面上题诗作画，是中国扇子的一大特色。从古到今，中国许多著名的书法家、画家都喜欢“题扇”、“画扇”，留下了不少精美的佳作。

在中国最常见的是折扇，拿在手里既方便又潇洒。中国生产折扇最有名的地方时杭州。杭州折扇往往采用名贵的材料做扇骨。著名的黑纸扇、檀香扇、象牙扇，不但是中国扇子中的佳品，在世界上也很有名。

Fans

People often use fan as a tool to relieve summer heat and enjoy the cool. Chinese fans have the charm of art and unique national feature since ancient times.

The history of Chinese fan can be dated to over 3,000 years ago, around the Shang Dynasty. There’s now a great variety of fans in China, such as paper fan, silk fan, palm-leaf fan, feather fan, bamboo fan and so on. The shapes of fans are also various: quadrate, circular, shape in plum blossom, crabapple, sunflower etc.

Writing poems and painting pictures on the covering of fans is also a key feature of Chinese fan. In all ages, many Chinese calligraphers and painters enjoy writing and painting on the fans, they have left lots excellent works.

The most common fans in China are folding fan. Taking folding fans in the hand is convenient and makes people elegant. Hangzhou is the most famous place of producing folding fans in China. The framework of fans in Hangzhou is often made by rare material. The famous black paper fans, sandalwood fans and ivory fans belong to the good items among Chinese fans, they also enjoy great prestige in the world.

石狮

狮子是中国人心目中的“灵兽”，被誉为“百兽之王”。在中国，随处都可以见到石雕的狮子。

由于中国人把狮子视为吉祥、勇敢、威武的象征，所以人们在修建宫殿、府第、

房屋及陵墓时，总喜欢用石头雕成各种各样的狮子，安放在门口，用来“驱魔避邪”，把守大门。在古代，设置石狮子是有一定规矩的，一般门左边的是雄狮，雄狮的右脚踩着一只绣球象征威力。门右边的是雌狮，雌狮用左脚抚慰小狮子，象征子孙昌盛。

在中国历史上，北京曾是五个封建王朝的都城，因此，在北京城内外，遗存下许许多多各式各样的石狮。其中，天安门前的那对最大，中山公园社稷坛门外的那对最古老。人们常说“卢沟桥的狮子—数不清”，可见卢沟桥的石狮之多。现在人们在北京看到的石狮，大多是明清时代的工匠们雕刻的，显得比较温顺。如果要看汉唐时期强健威猛的石狮，只能到中国的另一个古都西安去观赏了。

如今，石狮作为威武和吉祥的象征，又出现在繁华的街市和银行、商厦、公园的门前。据说，狮子爱玩“夜明珠”，所以，石狮的口中多半都含着一颗能活动的圆球

Stone Lions

To Chinese people, lions represent mythical beast and have famous reputation for “King of all animals’’. In China, the stone lions sculptures can be seen everywhere. Chinese people regard lions as the symbol of auspiciousness, braveness and power, for this reason, people always like setting stone lions at the door when they build palaces, mansions, houses and tombs to exorcise evil spirits and guard gates. In ancient times, there were particular rules of setting lions. In a general way, the male lions were on the left side, stepping on a ball with right foot, this style indicates power. On the right side, the female lions seem to pat the lionets with left foot, which symbolize prosperous posterity.

In the Chinese history, China was the capital of five feudal dynasties. Therefore, people can find many various remaining stone lions in the Beijing city. The biggest stone lions are in front of Tiananmen, the oldest are at the door of the Alter of Land and Grain on the Zhongshan park. There’s an old saying: the stone lines on the railing of the Lugou Bridge are countless. It follows that there’re so many stone lions. Nowadays, most stone lions in Beijing are built in Ming and Qing Dynasties by craftsman, which seem to be quiet and meek. If you wan to appreciate the robustness and fierceness from the stone lions, you might as well go to another ancient capital city in China, Xian.

At present, stone lions are usually being used has a symbol of power and auspiciousness; they can be seen in the hustling downtown, in front of the doors of banks, commercial buildings and parks.

It is said that lions like playing luminous pearls, so there’s always a rolling ball in most stone lions’ mouth.