Ultimate Introduction to Chinese Traditions and Customs

Chinese culture boasts a legacy as an ancient and enduring civilization, marked by a tapestry of traditions and customs meticulously passed down through the sands of time, spanning thousands of years.

This rich heritage forms the cultural bedrock that shapes the identity and ethos of the Chinese people.

Rituals and Etiquettes

Traditional Festivals

Some of these traditions have been carefully preserved, acting as threads that weave through the fabric of daily life, connecting the present with the distant past.

Simultaneously, the dynamic nature of Chinese culture is evident in the continual emergence of new customs.

They may seamlessly integrate with the old, forming a harmonious blend of tradition and the contemporary.

Alternatively, new customs may replace the old, showcasing the adaptability and fluidity inherent in Chinese culture.

Sundial on Forbidden City, Photo from Official Site of Palace Museum.

Rituals and Etiquettes in the Tradition of China

Formed in the Zhou Dynasty (1046 BC — 256 BC), Traditional Chinese Rituals include two main parts: national rituals regarding grand worship ceremonies by royals and officials and the individual etiquettes related to people's lives.

National Rituals

National Rituals concern grand worship ceremonies held by the ruling class, including worshiping heaven, earth, ancestors, and great deities, mostly to pray for the prosperity of the country, good harvests, and blessings for people's well-being.

Important rituals, for example, are the Fengshan Ceremony on Mount Tai and imperial worship rituals held in places like the Temple of Heaven.

After the last feudal dynasty ended in 1912, those grand imperial ceremonies were also abolished.

Individual Ceremonies

Birth Celebration

From birth date, three days, an entire month, a hundred days, to the baby's one-year-old birthday, there are various activities and ceremonies to celebrate the newborn.

Coming of Age Ceremony

Coming of Age Ceremony is the ritual that declares one is accepted by the clan and society as an adult, qualified to get married and participate in social activities, and will start taking relevant responsibilities.

For royals, it represents one's qualifications to inherit power and titles.

It was one of the essential rituals in ancient China and is revived today for its cultural meanings and symbolism.

Wedding Ceremony

A traditional Chinese wedding includes a series of traditions, customs, and rites, from preparation and engagement to the wedding day rituals and important after-wedding ceremonies.

Unearthed Bronze Bind-Cups (He Jin Bei) of the Han Dynasty (202 BC — 220 AD) that used for A Couple to Drink Cross-Cupped Wine on Their Wedding — Institute of Archaeology, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences

Funeral Tradition and Customs

In ancient China, national grief etiquettes were used to mourn famine, disease, natural disaster, or insurgence.

Civilians' funeral traditions included a series of rituals to send the deceased decently and with the highest respect.

Daily Etiquette

In the traditions of China, walking, sitting, greeting, eating, and drinking all have specific protocols that Chinese people have followed strictly based on ancient hierarchies.

Some of which are now more considered representative of decent manners.

Traditional Chinese Festivals

Traditional Festivals in China are historic and nonreligious and mainly originated from ancient sacrifice ceremonies, ancestor worship, agricultural-related activities, and ancient mythology.

Each festival has exceptional holiday food and various activities, some of which vary among regions.

Besides the inherited celebration traditions and customs, all traditional festivals in China are based on the Chinese Calendar.

Click to Read Origin, History, Food, and Customs of Traditional Chinese Festivals

Women Playing Herb Competing Games (Dou Bai Cao) in Dragon Boat Festival

Women Playing Herb Competing Games (Dou Bai Cao) on Dragon Boat Festival, Part of Painting "Spring Morning in the Han Palace" (Han Gong Chun Xiao Tu) by Qiu Ying (1494 — 1552) — Taipei Palace Museum

Traditional Chinese Calendar

The Chinese Calendar is a Lunisolar Calendar formed according to the movement of both the sun and moon.

Originating in the Xia Dynasty (2070 BC — 1600 BC) and being revised and improved several times in history, the Chinese Calendar or Nong Li has been used as an accurate guide to agricultural activities.

It includes 12 Months and 24 Solar Terms and uses the Sexagenary Cycle (or 10 Heavenly Stems and 12 Earthly Branches) as the record and count system.

Read Formation, Record, Elements, Facts, and Utilization of Chinese Calendar

Chinese Zodiac Signs

To present the 12 Earthly Branches in a vivid, straightforward way, 12 animals that were easier to remember by most civilians in an ancient agricultural society had been used and formed a new system.

That is the 12 Chinese Zodiac Signs: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig.

Every person, based on their birth date in the Chinese Calendar, has one zodiac sign.

Integrated with Yin Yang and Five Elements Theory, Chinese Astrology, and other ancient Mythological theories, every Chinese Zodiac Sign has good and bad years, benefactors, and incompatible matches.

12 Zodiac Animals Carved on Copper Mirror of the Tang Dynasty (618 — 907) — Luoyang Museum

Chinese Astrology

To observe and record movements of the Sun, Moon, Venus, Jupiter, Mercury, Mars, and Saturn, the ancient Chinese divided other shining stars into several groups: Three Enclosures in the middle section and Twenty-eight Lunar Mansions around the Ecliptic and the Equator.

Every group covers an area that is a coordinate or a mansion for the seven planets to "stay" during their movements.

Meanwhile, every mansion was assigned a beautiful name, a mythical creature, and a deity to guard.

The Earliest Artifact with the Entire Twenty-eight Lunar Mansions' names, Unearthed from Tomb of Marquis Yi of Zeng

The Earliest Artifact (Lacquer Suitcase) with the Entire Twenty-eight Lunar Mansions' names, Unearthed from Tomb of Marquis Yi of Zeng (about 477 BC — 433 BC) — Hubei Museum

In ancient Chinese astrology, the movement and position of the seven planets, brightness and colors of stars, and showing of meteors or other phenomena in mansions are all related to specific events or predict changes in the world on earth.

The moon moves to a different mansion every day; hence, based on birth date, every person has a Lunar Mansion, which forms a Chinese Constellation that indicates one's personality, career, love life, past relationships with others, destiny, and so on.

Ancient Astronomical Observatory on Mount Song, Built by Guo Shoujing from 1276 to 1279.

Feng Shui

The following and use of Feng Shui have been an important tradition in China for thousands of years.

The central concept of Feng Shui is that nature is powerful and influential. Hence, people should respect and make the best use of it and try their best to fit in the natural atmosphere.

In Chinese culture, it is believed that good Feng Shui can bring people fortune, while bad ones might bring negative influences.

Therefore, from the Imperial Palaces to Landscape Gardens and residents, from layout and structure to decorative patterns of buildings, Feng Shui rules have been strictly followed and applied.

Some people consider Feng Shui culture superstitious, while others believe it is a scientific, aesthetic subject and keep applying it extensively.

Dream Interpretation and Meanings

The dream is a vast, mysterious world that shows or occurs when people sleep, which can be joyful, funny, magical, scary, blue, bizarre, predictable, and reflective. People have interpreted and studied it for thousands of years, yet it remains mystical.

Because of dreams' complexity and mystery, interpreting dreams has been quite significant, especially in ancient times.

Click to Read Ultimate Introduction to Dream Interpretation in Chinese Culture