While many western traditions revolve around festivities on New Year’s Eve, a long standing tradition I am familiar with in East Asia is watching the sunrise on New Year’s Day. How about going for a pre-dawn hike on the …
Netflix and Chill in Chinese
Despite Netflix’s scandals this year, this later half of 2021 showed no slowing down of its value in stocks. In fact, since these last three months of 2021, its per share stock value has not dropped below $600 USD. What …
We Eat Chinese Food on Christmas
This may not sound surprising from a Chinese American like myself, but what if I told you this is a chapter in a book about Jewish American culture? Rabbi Joshua Plaut, author of “A Kosher Christmas: Tis The Season To Be …
What is Mulan’s English name?
In my blogs, I have addressed some preliminary information about people of non-Asian heritages meeting people with Chinese and East Asian heritage. The subject of names easily lends itself to a longer discussion. Take for example, the name Mulan. Due …
April is a Woman’s Name
In Western naming tradition, children could be named after an ancestor, a historical role model, an idol in popular culture, or even a month of the year. Chinese naming traditions follow many rules. One particular difference is that while children …
The ABC of Chinese Language Part II
Last time we explored the first two parts of Chinese language: Chinese language is not Alphabetical. Learning Chinese language is a Bilingual process. 3. Chinese language Competence involves character confusion at every level. A common learning phenomenon with a …
The ABC of Chinese Language Part I
The unique feature of the Chinese written language originates from a pictograph and ideogram system as from one of the four remaining ancient civilizations. Its contemporary writing systems were the Egyptian hieroglyphics, Mayan calendar, and a cuneiform writing from Mesopotamia …
What is in a Chinese last name?
Common American surnames include Anderson, Miller and Smith. No matter how common they may feel for you, the frequency does not exceed to the point of, let’s say, five or nine students in a 30 person classroom. With a billion …
When Does Lunar New Year End?
Think of the Lunar New Year as a two week Olympic Games. Then, the Lantern Festival would be the closing ceremony that sends everyone home. This year Lantern Festival lands on February 26th. Unlike the Lunar New Year, which broadly …
Lunar New Year preparation for the Year of the OX
Not sure what to do for the Lunar New Year celebrations? Here’s a quick overview: Image downloaded from https://www.chinahighlights.com/travelguide/festivals/chinese-new-year-celebration.htm For Lunar New Year parade in Downtown Chicago, click here: Looking for a quarantine lion dance to get into the mood?