Archive for July, 2008

Children Chinese – The Chinese Zodiac

Thursday, July 31st, 2008

The Chinese Zodiac

 

Rat: 1924, 1936, 1948, 1960, 1972, 1984, 1996, 2008People born in the Year of the Rat are famous for cheerfulness and kindness. They are generous with those they love. Rat people love to gossip. That can cost them many friendships if they are not careful.

Ox: 1913, 1925, 1937, 1949, 1961, 1973, 1985, 1997Ox people are easy going and have a great deal of self-assurance that helps help them to be successful. Ox people have thoughtful responses. Ox people love deeply and share their strength with those they love.

Tiger: 1914, 1926, 1938, 1950, 1962, 1974, 1986, 1998Tiger people are brave, powerful, loyal, intelligent, competent, and stubborn. Tigers make great friends. Tiger people tend not to respect their elders and that can get them in a lot of trouble.

Rabbit: 1915, 1927, 1939, 1951, 1963, 1975, 1987, 1999Rabbit people are lucky, happy, independent, affectionate, bright, ambitious, and trustworthy. Rabbit people have little interest in learning to appear smart. They simply like to know how things work.

Dragon: 1916, 1928, 1940, 1952, 1964, 1976, 1988, 2000Dragon people are honest, full of energy, stubborn, loyal, strong, and protective. Dragon people are incredibly lucky. They love flattery, and can be attracted to bad behavior. That is their weakness.

Snake: 1917, 1929, 1941, 1953, 1965, 1977, 1989, 2001Snake people are wise and focused. They trust their own judgment. Snake people cannot help but do their best because they hate to fail at anything. Snake people believe everyone should lend a helping hand.

Horse: 1918, 1930, 1942, 1954, 1966, 1978, 1990, 2002Horse people are popular, cheerful, quick witted, and shy. For some reason, horse people have a great deal of trouble believing they are loved, when in fact, horse people are easy to like and love.

Ram (Black or Gray Sheep): 1919, 1931, 1943, 1955, 1967, 1979, 1991, 2003Sheep people are elegant, wise, gentle, shy, and compassionate. They can be bossy, but that’s because they’re worried things will not get done correctly. This character trait often makes money for them.

Monkey: 1920, 1932, 1944, 1956, 1968, 1980, 1992, 2004Monkey people are quick, funny, nosey, clever, witty, and successful. They have wonderful memories and are well informed about everything. They tend to chatter. This does drive friends away sometimes.

Rooster: 1921, 1933, 1945, 1957, 1969, 1981, 1993, 2005Rooster people are early risers, proud, alert, deep thinkers and good speakers. They like to stay close to home. If you can break through their natural suspicion, they make wonderful friends.

Dog: 1922, 1934, 1946, 1958, 1970, 1982, 1994, 2006Dog people are loyal friends, quick to learn, eager to please, and always try to do their best. They prefer to be with people they know and like. Dog people cannot stand injustice.

Pig: 1923, 1935, 1947, 1959, 1971, 1983, 1995, 2007People who are born in the Year of the Pig are intelligent, sincere, brave, popular, and treat all people with great kindness. Pig people are often late and often forgetful.

Chinese Characters: apple 苹果

Thursday, July 31st, 2008

apple:

Chinese Pinyin: ping2 guo3

(Source: about.com)

Chinese Culture – Tile-Ends

Thursday, July 31st, 2008

 

A Wadang (tile-end) is a particular piece of tile that is placed over the last tile in each line of tiles on the traditional Chinese roof. Therefore tile-ends are placed all the way along the eaves of the sloping roof. They were important components of tiles in ancient Chinese architecture and served as protective and decorative functions.

 

 

Wadang adorned with molded designs was first manufactured during the Western Zhou Dynasty (1100-771BC), but the use of stylized characters as architectural ornaments appears to have developed in the state of Yan during the Warring States Period. The tradition flourished during the Qin (221-206BC) and Han (206BC-220AD) dynasties. Western Han tile-ends are typically divided into two or four sections; the winding, ropelike characters contained within are in relief and adapted to fit within the confines of circular forms.

 

In the Han Dynasty, the technique of Wadang making reached its peak. In this period, the design was elaborate and Wadang decorated with Zhuan (seal scripts) came into being. The Zhuan calligraphy on Wadang was mainly Xiaozhuan (lesser seal scripts) and the characters were arranged orderly and equably, featuring simplicity and vigor.

 

 

The design of Wadang has a great variety and it is not only an art that combines painting, craftwork and carving but also a result of the combination of practicality and aesthetics. Wadang adds much beauty to ancient architectures. Wadang not only presents artistic enjoyment to people but also provides important material reference for archeological estimation of ancient buildings. In addition, Wadang is not only valuable materials about Chinese calligraphy, seal engraving, painting and so on but also provides some reference for study of politics, economy and culture in different periods.

Source: chinaculture.org