1.
Dragon Dance (novel)
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Dragon Dance is a young adult alternative history novel by John Christopher. The last novel of the Fireball trilogy, it was first published in 1986, at the end of New Found Land, Simon and Brad are in North America where they are captured by sailors from the Far East. When they awaken after losing consciousness during the capture, they find themselves aboard a Chinese junk crossing the Pacific Ocean, the junk is a paddle steamer that sails without human intervention. The crew have put themselves into hibernation, indicating that they are accustomed to the trip and are expecting an uneventful journey. On their arrival in China they are taken to the Imperial Court, there, Brad becomes besotted with the Dowager Regent and becomes estranged from Simon. They are taken in by Bei Pen, a follower of the laws of Bei-Kun, Simon is sent to the north to serve the general of the powerful Northern Army in charge of resisting nomadic barbarians. The arrival of the boys catalyses the ongoing court intrigue between the regent and court officials. A series of bad news arrives in the north from the capital which implies that the emperor is being held incommunicado. The general of the Northern Army, the most powerful army in the empire publicly declares that the regent as an usurper. He candidly admits to Simon that should the emperor be dead, Simon attempts to help the general by the introduction of armored tanks, but lacks detailed knowledge. Nonetheless Chinese engineers in the service of the general are able to build on the concept to produce some prototypes. The Chinese themselves use flying kites to give the appearance that dragons are aiding their military, however, the expedition becomes a disaster at the gates of the capital. Simon discovers that Brad has introduced airplanes to the regents forces. While the airplanes work, Simons tanks do not, having rid herself of all opposition, the dowager regent callously discards Brad and attempts to have him killed. The two boys manage to escape again, staying with Bei-Pen. He reveals that he has the knowledge to them both home. Though he is given the option to go home, Simon follows Brad when the latter refuses to go home and instead decides to try for better luck in a new realm
2.
Traditional Chinese characters
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Traditional Chinese characters are Chinese characters in any character set that does not contain newly created characters or character substitutions performed after 1946. They are most commonly the characters in the character sets of Taiwan, of Hong Kong. Currently, a number of overseas Chinese online newspapers allow users to switch between both sets. In contrast, simplified Chinese characters are used in mainland China, Singapore, the debate on traditional and simplified Chinese characters has been a long-running issue among Chinese communities. Although simplified characters are taught and endorsed by the government of Mainland China, Traditional characters are used informally in regions in China primarily in handwriting and also used for inscriptions and religious text. They are often retained in logos or graphics to evoke yesteryear, nonetheless, the vast majority of media and communications in China is dominated by simplified characters. Taiwan has never adopted Simplified Chinese characters since it is ruled by the Republic of China, the use of simplified characters in official documents is even prohibited by the government in Taiwan. Simplified characters are not well understood in general, although some stroke simplifications that have incorporated into Simplified Chinese are in common use in handwriting. For example, while the name of Taiwan is written as 臺灣, similarly, in Hong Kong and Macau, Traditional Chinese has been the legal written form since colonial times. In recent years, because of the influx of mainland Chinese tourists, today, even government websites use simplified Chinese, as they answer to the Beijing government. This has led to concerns by residents to protect their local heritage. In Southeast Asia, the Chinese Filipino community continues to be one of the most conservative regarding simplification, while major public universities are teaching simplified characters, many well-established Chinese schools still use traditional characters. Publications like the Chinese Commercial News, World News, and United Daily News still use traditional characters, on the other hand, the Philippine Chinese Daily uses simplified. Aside from local newspapers, magazines from Hong Kong, such as the Yazhou Zhoukan, are found in some bookstores. In case of film or television subtitles on DVD, the Chinese dub that is used in Philippines is the same as the one used in Taiwan and this is because the DVDs belongs to DVD Region Code 3. Hence, most of the subtitles are in Traditional Characters, overseas Chinese in the United States have long used traditional characters. A major influx of Chinese immigrants to the United States occurred during the half of the 19th century. Therefore, the majority of Chinese language signage in the United States, including street signs, Traditional Chinese characters are called several different names within the Chinese-speaking world
3.
Simplified Chinese characters
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Simplified Chinese characters are standardized Chinese characters prescribed in the Table of General Standard Chinese Characters for use in mainland China. Along with traditional Chinese characters, it is one of the two character sets of the contemporary Chinese written language. The government of the Peoples Republic of China in mainland China has promoted them for use in printing since the 1950s and 1960s in an attempt to increase literacy and they are officially used in the Peoples Republic of China and Singapore. Traditional Chinese characters are used in Hong Kong, Macau. Overseas Chinese communities generally tend to use traditional characters, Simplified Chinese characters may be referred to by their official name above or colloquially. Strictly, the latter refers to simplifications of character structure or body, character forms that have existed for thousands of years alongside regular, Simplified character forms were created by decreasing the number of strokes and simplifying the forms of a sizable proportion of traditional Chinese characters. Some simplifications were based on popular cursive forms embodying graphic or phonetic simplifications of the traditional forms, some characters were simplified by applying regular rules, for example, by replacing all occurrences of a certain component with a simplified version of the component. Variant characters with the pronunciation and identical meaning were reduced to a single standardized character. Finally, many characters were left untouched by simplification, and are identical between the traditional and simplified Chinese orthographies. Some simplified characters are very dissimilar to and unpredictably different from traditional characters and this often leads opponents not well-versed in the method of simplification to conclude that the overall process of character simplification is also arbitrary. In reality, the methods and rules of simplification are few, on the other hand, proponents of simplification often flaunt a few choice simplified characters as ingenious inventions, when in fact these have existed for hundreds of years as ancient variants. However, the Chinese government never officially dropped its goal of further simplification in the future, in August 2009, the PRC began collecting public comments for a modified list of simplified characters. The new Table of General Standard Chinese Characters consisting of 8,105 characters was promulgated by the State Council of the Peoples Republic of China on June 5,2013, cursive written text almost always includes character simplification. Simplified forms used in print have always existed, they date back to as early as the Qin dynasty, One of the earliest proponents of character simplification was Lubi Kui, who proposed in 1909 that simplified characters should be used in education. In the years following the May Fourth Movement in 1919, many anti-imperialist Chinese intellectuals sought ways to modernise China, Traditional culture and values such as Confucianism were challenged. Soon, people in the Movement started to cite the traditional Chinese writing system as an obstacle in modernising China and it was suggested that the Chinese writing system should be either simplified or completely abolished. Fu Sinian, a leader of the May Fourth Movement, called Chinese characters the writing of ox-demons, lu Xun, a renowned Chinese author in the 20th century, stated that, If Chinese characters are not destroyed, then China will die. Recent commentators have claimed that Chinese characters were blamed for the problems in China during that time
4.
Standard Chinese
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Its pronunciation is based on the Beijing dialect, its vocabulary on the Mandarin dialects, and its grammar is based on written vernacular Chinese. Like other varieties of Chinese, Standard Chinese is a language with topic-prominent organization. It has more initial consonants but fewer vowels, final consonants, Standard Chinese is an analytic language, though with many compound words. There exist two standardised forms of the language, namely Putonghua in Mainland China and Guoyu in Taiwan, aside from a number of differences in pronunciation and vocabulary, Putonghua is written using simplified Chinese characters, while Guoyu is written using traditional Chinese characters. There are many characters that are identical between the two systems, in English, the governments of China and Hong Kong use Putonghua, Putonghua Chinese, Mandarin Chinese, and Mandarin, while those of Taiwan, Singapore, and Malaysia, use Mandarin. The name Putonghua also has a long, albeit unofficial, history and it was used as early as 1906 in writings by Zhu Wenxiong to differentiate a modern, standard Chinese from classical Chinese and other varieties of Chinese. For some linguists of the early 20th century, the Putonghua, or common tongue/speech, was different from the Guoyu. The former was a prestige variety, while the latter was the legal standard. Based on common understandings of the time, the two were, in fact, different, Guoyu was understood as formal vernacular Chinese, which is close to classical Chinese. By contrast, Putonghua was called the speech of the modern man. The use of the term Putonghua by left-leaning intellectuals such as Qu Qiubai, prior to this, the government used both terms interchangeably. In Taiwan, Guoyu continues to be the term for Standard Chinese. The term Putonghua, on the contrary, implies nothing more than the notion of a lingua franca, Huayu, or language of the Chinese nation, originally simply meant Chinese language, and was used in overseas communities to contrast Chinese with foreign languages. Over time, the desire to standardise the variety of Chinese spoken in these communities led to the adoption of the name Huayu to refer to Mandarin and it also incorporates the notion that Mandarin is usually not the national or common language of the areas in which overseas Chinese live. The term Mandarin is a translation of Guānhuà, which referred to the lingua franca of the late Chinese empire, in English, Mandarin may refer to the standard language, the dialect group as a whole, or to historic forms such as the late Imperial lingua franca. The name Modern Standard Mandarin is sometimes used by linguists who wish to distinguish the current state of the language from other northern. Chinese has long had considerable variation, hence prestige dialects have always existed. Confucius, for example, used yǎyán rather than colloquial regional dialects, rime books, which were written since the Northern and Southern dynasties, may also have reflected one or more systems of standard pronunciation during those times
5.
Pinyin
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Pinyin, or Hànyǔ Pīnyīn, is the official romanization system for Standard Chinese in mainland China, Malaysia, Singapore, and Taiwan. It is often used to teach Standard Chinese, which is written using Chinese characters. The system includes four diacritics denoting tones, Pinyin without tone marks is used to spell Chinese names and words in languages written with the Latin alphabet, and also in certain computer input methods to enter Chinese characters. The pinyin system was developed in the 1950s by many linguists, including Zhou Youguang and it was published by the Chinese government in 1958 and revised several times. The International Organization for Standardization adopted pinyin as a standard in 1982. The system was adopted as the standard in Taiwan in 2009. The word Hànyǔ means the language of the Han people. In 1605, the Jesuit missionary Matteo Ricci published Xizi Qiji in Beijing and this was the first book to use the Roman alphabet to write the Chinese language. Twenty years later, another Jesuit in China, Nicolas Trigault, neither book had much immediate impact on the way in which Chinese thought about their writing system, and the romanizations they described were intended more for Westerners than for the Chinese. One of the earliest Chinese thinkers to relate Western alphabets to Chinese was late Ming to early Qing Dynasty scholar-official, the first late Qing reformer to propose that China adopt a system of spelling was Song Shu. A student of the great scholars Yu Yue and Zhang Taiyan, Song had been to Japan and observed the effect of the kana syllabaries. This galvanized him into activity on a number of fronts, one of the most important being reform of the script, while Song did not himself actually create a system for spelling Sinitic languages, his discussion proved fertile and led to a proliferation of schemes for phonetic scripts. The Wade–Giles system was produced by Thomas Wade in 1859, and it was popular and used in English-language publications outside China until 1979. This Sin Wenz or New Writing was much more sophisticated than earlier alphabets. In 1940, several members attended a Border Region Sin Wenz Society convention. Mao Zedong and Zhu De, head of the army, both contributed their calligraphy for the masthead of the Sin Wenz Societys new journal. Outside the CCP, other prominent supporters included Sun Yat-sens son, Sun Fo, Cai Yuanpei, the countrys most prestigious educator, Tao Xingzhi, an educational reformer. Over thirty journals soon appeared written in Sin Wenz, plus large numbers of translations, biographies, some contemporary Chinese literature, and a spectrum of textbooks
6.
Southern Min
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Southern Min, or Minnan, is a branch of Min Chinese spoken in certain parts of China including southern Fujian, eastern Guangdong, Hainan, and southern Zhejiang, and in Taiwan. The Min Nan dialects are spoken by descendants of emigrants from these areas in diaspora, most notably the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia. In common parlance, Southern Min usually refers to Hokkien, including Amoy and Taiwanese Hokkien, the Southern Min dialect group also includes Teochew, though Teochew has limited mutual intelligibility with Hokkien. Hainanese is not mutually intellgible with other Southern Min and is considered a separate branch of Min. Southern Min is not mutually intelligible with Eastern Min, Pu-Xian Min, any other Min branch, Hakka, Cantonese, Shanghainese or Mandarin. Southern Min dialects are spoken in the part of Fujian. The variant spoken in Leizhou, Guangdong as well as Hainan is Hainanese and is not mutually intelligible with other Southern Min or Teochew, Hainanese is classified in some schemes as part of Southern Min and in other schemes as separate. Puxian Min was originally based on the Quanzhou dialect, but over time became heavily influenced by Eastern Min, eventually losing intellegility with Minnan. A forms of Southern Min spoken in Taiwan, collectively known as Taiwanese, Southern Min is a first language for most of the Hoklo people, the main ethnicity of Taiwan. The correspondence between language and ethnicity is not absolute, as some Hoklo have very limited proficiency in Southern Min while some non-Hoklo speak Southern Min fluently, there are many Southern Min speakers also among Overseas Chinese in Southeast Asia. Many ethnic Chinese immigrants to the region were Hoklo from southern Fujian and brought the language to what is now Burma, Indonesia and present-day Malaysia and Singapore. In general, Southern Min from southern Fujian is known as Hokkien, Hokkienese, many Southeast Asian ethnic Chinese also originated in the Chaoshan region of Guangdong and speak Teochew language, the variant of Southern Min from that region. Southern Min-speakers form the majority of Chinese in Singapore, with the largest group being Hokkien, despite the similarities the two groups are rarely seen as part of the same Minnan Chinese subgroups. The variants of Southern Min spoken in Zhejiang province are most akin to that spoken in Quanzhou, the variants spoken in Taiwan are similar to the three Fujian variants and are collectively known as Taiwanese. Those Southern Min variants that are known as Hokkien in Southeast Asia also originate from these variants. The variants of Southern Min in the Chaoshan region of eastern Guangdong province are known as Teochew or Chaozhou. Teochew is of importance in the Southeast Asian Chinese diaspora, particularly in Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Sumatra. The Philippines variant is mostly from the Quanzhou area as most of their forefathers are from the aforementioned area, the Southern Min language variant spoken around Shanwei and Haifeng differs markedly from Teochew and may represent a later migration from Zhangzhou
7.
Hokkien
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Hokkien /hɒˈkiɛn/ is a group of Southern Min dialects spoken throughout Southeastern China, Taiwan, Southeast Asia and by other overseas Chinese. Hokkien originated in southern Fujian, the Min-speaking province and it is closely related to Teochew, though there is limited mutual intelligibility, and is somewhat more distantly related to Hainanese and Leizhou dialect. Besides Hokkien, there are also other Min and Hakka dialects in Fujian province, the term Hokkien is etymologically derived from the Southern Min pronunciation for Fujian, the province from which the language hails. The variety is known by other terms such as the more general Min Nan or Southern Min. Fujianese and Fukienese are also used, although they are somewhat imprecise, the term Hokkien is not usually used in Mainland China or Taiwan. Conversely Hokkien is the name in Southeast Asia in both English, Chinese or other languages. Speakers of Hokkien, particularly those in Southeast Asia, typically refer to Hokkien as a dialect, people in Taiwan most often refer to Hokkien as the Taiwanese language, with Minnan and Holo also being used and 福建話 is not as common. Hokkien originated in the area of Fujian province, an important center for trade and migration. The major pole of Hokkien varieties outside of Fujian is Taiwan, the Taiwanese version mostly have origins with the Quanzhou and Zhangzhou variants, but since then, the Amoy dialect is becoming the modern prestige standard for the language. There are many Hokkien speakers among overseas Chinese in Southeast Asia as well as in the United States, many ethnic Han Chinese emigrants to the region were Hoklo from southern Fujian, and brought the language to what is now Burma, Indonesia and present day Malaysia and Singapore. Many of the Hokkien dialects of this region are similar to Taiwanese and Amoynese. Hokkien is reportedly the native language of up to 80% of the Chinese people in the Philippines, Hokkien speakers form the largest group of overseas Chinese in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and Philippines. Southern and part of western Fujian is home to four principal Hokkien dialects, Chinchew, Amoy, Chiangchew and Longyan, originating from the cities of Quanzhou, Xiamen, Zhangzhou and Longyan. As Xiamen is the city of southern Fujian, Amoy is considered the most important, or even the prestige dialect. It is a hybrid of the Quanzhou and Zhangzhou dialects, same as Amoy dialect, the varieties of Hokkien spoken in Taiwan are hybrids of the Quanzhou and Zhangzhou dialects, and are collectively known as Taiwanese Hokkien or just Taiwanese. Used by a majority of the population, it bears much importance from a socio-political perspective, the varieties of Hokkien in Southeast Asia originate from these dialects. The Singaporeans, Southern Malaysians and people in Indonesias Riau and surrounding islands variant is from the Quanzhou area and they speak a distinct form of Quanzhou Hokkien called Southern Peninsular Malaysian Hokkien. Among ethnic Chinese inhabitants of Penang, and other states in Northern Malaysia and Medan, with areas in North Sumatra, Indonesia
8.
Dance
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Dance is a performance art form consisting of purposefully selected sequences of human movement. This movement has aesthetic and symbolic value, and is acknowledged as dance by performers and observers within a particular culture, Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoire of movements, or by its historical period or place of origin. Other forms of movement are sometimes said to have a dance-like quality, including martial arts, gymnastics, figure skating, synchronized swimming. Theatrical dance, also called performance or concert dance, is intended primarily as a spectacle and it often tells a story, perhaps using mime, costume and scenery, or else it may simply interpret the musical accompaniment, which is often specially composed. Examples are western ballet and modern dance, Classical Indian dance and Chinese and Japanese song, most classical forms are centred upon dance alone, but performance dance may also appear in opera and other forms of musical theatre. Such dance seldom has any narrative, a group dance and a corps de ballet, a social partner dance and a pas de deux, differ profoundly. Even a solo dance may be solely for the satisfaction of the dancer. On the other hand, some cultures lay down strict rules as to the dances in which, for example. Archeological evidence for early dance includes 9, 000-year-old paintings in India at the Rock Shelters of Bhimbetka and it has been proposed that before the invention of written languages, dance was an important part of the oral and performance methods of passing stories down from generation to generation. The use of dance in trance states and healing rituals is thought to have been another early factor in the social development of dance. References to dance can be found in very early recorded history, Greek dance is referred to by Plato, Aristotle, Plutarch, the Bible and Talmud refer to many events related to dance, and contain over 30 different dance terms. In Chinese pottery as early as the Neolithic period, groups of people are depicted dancing in a line holding hands, Dance is further described in the Lüshi Chunqiu. Primitive dance in ancient China was associated with sorcery and shamanic rituals, during the first millennium BCE in India, many texts were composed which attempted to codify aspects of daily life. Bharata Munis Natyashastra is one of the earlier texts and it mainly deals with drama, in which dance plays an important part in Indian culture. It categorizes dance into four types - secular, ritual, abstract, the text elaborates various hand-gestures and classifies movements of the various limbs, steps and so on. A strong continuous tradition of dance has since continued in India, through to modern times, where it continues to play a role in culture, ritual, and, notably, the Bollywood entertainment industry. Many other contemporary dance forms can likewise be traced back to historical, traditional, ceremonial, Dance is generally, though not exclusively, performed with the accompaniment of music and may or may not be performed in time to such music. Some dance may provide its own audible accompaniment in place of music, many early forms of music and dance were created for each other and are frequently performed together
9.
China
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China, officially the Peoples Republic of China, is a unitary sovereign state in East Asia and the worlds most populous country, with a population of over 1.381 billion. The state is governed by the Communist Party of China and its capital is Beijing, the countrys major urban areas include Shanghai, Guangzhou, Beijing, Chongqing, Shenzhen, Tianjin and Hong Kong. China is a power and a major regional power within Asia. Chinas landscape is vast and diverse, ranging from forest steppes, the Himalaya, Karakoram, Pamir and Tian Shan mountain ranges separate China from much of South and Central Asia. The Yangtze and Yellow Rivers, the third and sixth longest in the world, respectively, Chinas coastline along the Pacific Ocean is 14,500 kilometers long and is bounded by the Bohai, Yellow, East China and South China seas. China emerged as one of the worlds earliest civilizations in the basin of the Yellow River in the North China Plain. For millennia, Chinas political system was based on hereditary monarchies known as dynasties, in 1912, the Republic of China replaced the last dynasty and ruled the Chinese mainland until 1949, when it was defeated by the communist Peoples Liberation Army in the Chinese Civil War. The Communist Party established the Peoples Republic of China in Beijing on 1 October 1949, both the ROC and PRC continue to claim to be the legitimate government of all China, though the latter has more recognition in the world and controls more territory. China had the largest economy in the world for much of the last two years, during which it has seen cycles of prosperity and decline. Since the introduction of reforms in 1978, China has become one of the worlds fastest-growing major economies. As of 2016, it is the worlds second-largest economy by nominal GDP, China is also the worlds largest exporter and second-largest importer of goods. China is a nuclear weapons state and has the worlds largest standing army. The PRC is a member of the United Nations, as it replaced the ROC as a permanent member of the U. N. Security Council in 1971. China is also a member of numerous formal and informal multilateral organizations, including the WTO, APEC, BRICS, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, the BCIM, the English name China is first attested in Richard Edens 1555 translation of the 1516 journal of the Portuguese explorer Duarte Barbosa. The demonym, that is, the name for the people, Portuguese China is thought to derive from Persian Chīn, and perhaps ultimately from Sanskrit Cīna. Cīna was first used in early Hindu scripture, including the Mahābhārata, there are, however, other suggestions for the derivation of China. The official name of the state is the Peoples Republic of China. The shorter form is China Zhōngguó, from zhōng and guó and it was then applied to the area around Luoyi during the Eastern Zhou and then to Chinas Central Plain before being used as an occasional synonym for the state under the Qing
10.
Chinese culture
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Chinese culture is one of the worlds oldest cultures, tracing back to thousands of years ago. The area in which the culture is dominant covers a geographical region in eastern Asia with customs. Important components of Chinese culture include ceramics, architecture, music, literature, martial arts, cuisine, visual arts, philosophy, there are 56 officially labelled ethnic groups in China. In terms of numbers however, Han Chinese is by far the largest group, throughout history, many groups have merged into neighboring ethnicities or disappeared. At the same time, many within the Han identity have maintained distinct linguistic, the term Zhonghua Minzu has been used to describe the notion of Chinese nationalism in general. Much of the traditional identity within the community has to do with distinguishing the family name and they were located on the Yellow and Yangtze River. Traditional Chinese Culture covers large geographical territories, where region is usually divided into distinct sub-cultures. Each region is represented by three ancestral items. For example, Guangdong is represented by chenpi, aged ginger, others include ancient cities like Linan, which include tea leaf, bamboo shoot trunk, and hickory nut. Such distinctions give rise to the old Chinese proverb, 十里不同風, 百里不同俗/十里不同风, 百里不同俗, literally the praxis vary within ten li, since the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors period, some form of Chinese monarch has been the main ruler above all. Different periods of history have different names for the various positions within society, conceptually each imperial or feudal period is similar, with the government and military officials ranking high in the hierarchy, and the rest of the population under regular Chinese law. From the late Zhou Dynasty onwards, traditional Chinese society was organized into a system of socio-economic classes known as the four occupations. However, this system did not cover all groups while the distinctions between all groups became blurred ever since the commercialization of Chinese culture in the Song Dynasty. This led to the creation of a meritocracy, although success was only to males who could afford test preparation. Imperial examinations required applicants to write essays and demonstrate mastery of the Confucian classics and those who passed the highest level of the exam became elite scholar-officials known as jinshi, a highly esteemed socio-economic position. A major mythological structure developed around the topic of the mythology of the imperial exams, trades and crafts were usually taught by a shifu. The female historian Ban Zhao wrote the Lessons for Women in the Han Dynasty and outlined the four women must abide to, while scholars such as Zhu Xi. Chinese marriage and Taoist sexual practices are some of the rituals, most social values are derived from Confucianism and Taoism
11.
Lion dance
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Lion dance is a form of traditional dance in Chinese culture and other Asian countries in which performers mimic a lions movements in a lion costume. The lion dance is performed during the Chinese New Year and other Chinese traditional, cultural. It may also be performed at important occasions such as business opening events, special celebrations or wedding ceremonies, the Chinese lion dance is sometimes mistakenly referred to as dragon dance. An easy way to tell the difference is that a lion is normally operated by just two dancers, while a dragon is longer and needs many people, also, in a lion dance, the performers faces are only seen occasionally, since they are inside the lion. In a dragon dance, the faces can be easily seen since the dragon is held on poles. Chinese lion dance fundamental movements can be found in most Chinese martial arts, there are two main forms of the Chinese lion dance, the Northern Lion and the Southern Lion. Versions of the dance are also found in Japan, Korea, Tibet. Another form of lion dance exists in Indonesian culture, but it may be of a different tradition and may be referred to as Singa Barong. However, lion is not native to China, and the Lion Dance therefore has been suggested to have originated outside of China from countries such as India or Persia, and introduced via Cental Asia. According to ethnomusicologist Laurence Picken, the Chinese word for lion itself, shi, there were different versions of the dance in the Tang Dynasty. In a later account, the 5 lions were described as each over 3 metres tall and each had 12 lion lads, by the eighth century, this lion dance had reached Japan. During the Song Dynasty the lion dance was performed in festivals. The Southern Lion is a development in the south of China originating in the Guangdong province. However it is likely that the Southern Lion of Guangzhou is an adaptation of the Northern Lion to local myths and characteristics, the two main types of lion dance in China are the Northern and Southern Lions. Other ethnic minorities groups in China may also have their own lion dances, Chinese lion dances usually involve two dancers but may also be performed by one. The larger lions manipulated by two persons may be referred to as lions, and those manipulated by one person little lions. The performances may also be divided into civil and martial styles. The civil style emphasizes the character and mimics and behaviour of the lion, while the style is focused on acrobatics
12.
Chinese New Year
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Chinese New Year, also known as the Spring Festival in modern Mainland China, is an important Chinese festival celebrated at the turn of the traditional lunisolar Chinese calendar. Celebrations traditionally run from the preceding the first day, to the Lantern Festival on the 15th day of the first calendar month. The first day of the New Year falls on the new moon between 21 January and 20 February, in 2017, the first day of the Chinese New Year was on Saturday,28 January, initiating the year of the Rooster. The New Year festival is centuries old and gains significance because of several myths, traditionally, the festival was a time to honor deities as well as ancestors. Chinese New Year is considered a holiday for the Chinese and has had influence on the lunar new year celebrations of its geographic neighbors. Within China, regional customs and traditions concerning the celebration of the Chinese New Year vary widely, often, the evening preceding Chinese New Years Day is an occasion for Chinese families to gather for the annual reunion dinner. It is also traditional for every family to clean the house, in order to sweep away any ill-fortune. Windows and doors are decorated with red color paper-cuts and couplets with popular themes of fortune or happiness, wealth. Other activities include lighting firecrackers and giving money in red paper envelopes, in about one third of the Mainland population, or 500 million Northerners, dumplings feature prominently in the meals celebrating the festival. It is one of the worlds most prominent and celebrated festivals, the lunisolar Chinese calendar determines the date of Chinese New Year. In the Gregorian calendar, Chinese Lunar New Year begins at the new moon that falls between 21 January and 20 February, the median date of Chinese New Years Day is lichun on 4 or 5 February, the solar term next to Dahan. In the Chinese calendar, winter solstice must occur in the 11th month, to determine whether a year has an intercalary month, one only needs to check whether Chinese New Year is within the month of January. The Gregorian Calendar dates for Chinese New Year from 1912 to 2101 are below, along with the years presiding animal zodiac, the traditional Chinese calendar follows a Metonic cycle, and returns to the same date in Gregorian calendar roughly. The names of the Earthly Branches have no English counterparts and are not the Chinese translations of the animals, alongside the 12-year cycle of the animal zodiac there is a 10-year cycle of heavenly stems. Each of the ten heavenly stems is associated with one of the five elements of Chinese astrology, namely, Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, the elements are rotated every two years while a yin and yang association alternates every year. The elements are distinguished, Yang Wood, Yin Wood, Yang Fire, Yin Fire. These produce a cycle that repeats every 60 years. For example, the year of the Yang Fire Rat occurred in 1936, many people inaccurately calculate their Chinese birth-year by converting it from their Gregorian birth-year
13.
Chinese dragon
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Chinese dragons are legendary creatures in Chinese mythology and Chinese folklore. The dragons have many forms such as turtles, fish, and imaginary. Chinese dragons traditionally symbolize potent and auspicious powers, particularly control over water, rainfall, typhoons, the dragon is also a symbol of power, strength, and good luck for people who are worthy of it. With this, the Emperor of China usually used the dragon as a symbol of his imperial power and strength. In Chinese daily language, excellent and outstanding people are compared to a dragon, while people with no achievements are compared with other, disesteemed creatures. A number of Chinese proverbs and idioms feature references to a dragon, historically, the dragon was associated with the Emperor of China and used a symbol to represent imperial power. The founder of Han dynasty Liu Bang claimed that he was conceived after his mother dreamt of a dragon, during the Tang dynasty, Emperors wore robes with dragon motif as an imperial symbol, and high officials might also be presented with dragon robes. In the Yuan dynasty, the two-horned five-clawed dragon was designated for use by the Son of Heaven or Emperor only, similarly during the Ming and Qin dynasty, the five-clawed dragon was strictly reserved for use by the Emperor only. The dragon in the Qing dynasty appeared on the first Chinese national flag, the dragon is sometimes used in the West as a national emblem of China. However, this usage within either the Peoples Republic of China or the Republic of China on Taiwan as the symbol of nation is not common, instead, it is generally used as the symbol of culture. In Hong Kong, the dragon was on the Coat of arms of Hong Kong during colonial time, now it is part of the design of Brand Hong Kong, a symbol used to promote Hong Kong as an international brand name. The dragon is the symbol of Chinese emperor in many dynasties, during the Qing dynasty, the Azure Dragon was featured on the first Chinese national flag, until Qing collapsed. It featured shortly again on the Twelve Symbols national emblem, which was used during the Republic of China, the ancient Chinese self-identified as the descendants of the dragon because the Chinese dragon is an imagined reptile that represents evolution from the ancestors and qi energy. Some of the earliest Dragon artifacts are the pig dragon carvings from the Hongshan culture, the coiled dragon or snake form played an important role in early Chinese culture. The character for dragon in the earliest Chinese writing has a coiled form. Ancient Chinese referred to unearthed dinosaur bones as dragon bones and documented them as such, for example, Chang Qu in 300 BC documents the discovery of dragon bones in Sichuan. The modern Chinese word for dinosaur is konglong, and villagers in central China have long unearthed fossilized dragon bones for use in traditional medicines, the binomial name for a variety of dinosaurs discovered in China, Mei long, in Chinese means sleeping dragon. From its origins as totems or the depiction of natural creatures
14.
Han dynasty
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The Han dynasty was the second imperial dynasty of China, preceded by the Qin dynasty and succeeded by the Three Kingdoms period. Spanning over four centuries, the Han period is considered an age in Chinese history. To this day, Chinas majority ethnic group refers to itself as the Han people and it was founded by the rebel leader Liu Bang, known posthumously as Emperor Gaozu of Han, and briefly interrupted by the Xin dynasty of the former regent Wang Mang. This interregnum separates the Han dynasty into two periods, the Western Han or Former Han and the Eastern Han or Later Han, the emperor was at the pinnacle of Han society. He presided over the Han government but shared power with both the nobility and appointed ministers who came largely from the gentry class. The Han Empire was divided into areas controlled by the central government using an innovation inherited from the Qin known as commanderies. These kingdoms gradually lost all vestiges of their independence, particularly following the Rebellion of the Seven States, from the reign of Emperor Wu onward, the Chinese court officially sponsored Confucianism in education and court politics, synthesized with the cosmology of later scholars such as Dong Zhongshu. This policy endured until the fall of the Qing dynasty in 1911 AD, the Han dynasty was an age of economic prosperity and saw a significant growth of the money economy first established during the Zhou dynasty. The coinage issued by the government mint in 119 BC remained the standard coinage of China until the Tang dynasty. The period saw a number of limited institutional innovations, the Xiongnu, a nomadic steppe confederation, defeated the Han in 200 BC and forced the Han to submit as a de facto inferior partner, but continued their raids on the Han borders. Emperor Wu of Han launched several campaigns against them. The ultimate Han victory in these wars eventually forced the Xiongnu to accept vassal status as Han tributaries, the territories north of Hans borders were quickly overrun by the nomadic Xianbei confederation. Imperial authority was seriously challenged by large Daoist religious societies which instigated the Yellow Turban Rebellion. When Cao Pi, King of Wei, usurped the throne from Emperor Xian, following Liu Bangs victory in the Chu–Han Contention, the resulting Han dynasty was named after the Hanzhong fief. Chinas first imperial dynasty was the Qin dynasty, the Qin unified the Chinese Warring States by conquest, but their empire became unstable after the death of the first emperor Qin Shi Huangdi. Within four years, the authority had collapsed in the face of rebellion. Although Xiang Yu proved to be a commander, Liu Bang defeated him at Battle of Gaixia. Liu Bang assumed the title emperor at the urging of his followers and is known posthumously as Emperor Gaozu, Changan was chosen as the new capital of the reunified empire under Han
15.
Yinglong
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Yinglong is a winged dragon and rain deity in ancient Chinese mythology. This legendary creatures name yinglong combines 4th-tone yìng 應 respond, correspond, answer, reply, agree, comply, consent, promise, adapt, apply and lóng 龍 Chinese dragon. Chinese classic texts frequently mention yinglong 應龍 a winged rain-dragon in myths about the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors, especially the Yellow Emperor and his alleged descendent King Yu. The examples below, limited to books with English translations, are arranged in chronological order. The Chuci Songs of Chu mentions Yinglong helping King Yu 禹, according to Chinese folklore, King Yao 堯 assigned Yus father Gun 鯀, who was supposedly a descendent of the Yellow Emperor, to control massive flooding, but he failed. Yaos successor King Shun 舜 had Gun executed and his body exposed, Shun appointed Yu to control the floods, and after succeeding through diligently constructing canals, Yu divided ancient China into the Jiuzhou or Nine Provinces. The Tianwen Heavenly Questions section asks about Yinglong, in context with Zhulong 燭龍 Torch Dragon, when Lord Gun brought forth Yu from his belly, how was he transformed. Yu inherited the tradition and carried on the work of his father. If he continued the work begun, in what way was his plan a different one. How did he fill the waters up where they were most deep. How did he set bounds to the Nine Lands, what did the winged dragon trace on the ground. Where did the seas and rivers flow, the Chuci commentary of Wang Yi 王逸 answers that Yinglong drew lines on the ground to show Yu where to dig drainage and irrigation canals. The Shanhaijing 山海經 Classic of Mountains and Seas records variant Yinglong myths in two chapters of The Classic of the Great Wilderness section. The Responding Dragon is connected with two deities who rebelled against the Yellow Emperor, the war-god and rain-god Chi You 蚩尤 Jest Much and the drought-demon Kua Fu 夸父 Boast Father. The Classic of the Great Wilderness, The East mentions Yinglong killing both Chi You Jest Much and Kua Fu Boast Father, and describes using Yinglong images in sympathetic magic for rainmaking, at the northeast corner of the Great Wilderness there is a mountain. Responding Dragon lives at the South Pole and he killed the gods Jest Much and Boast Father. But then Responding Dragon could not go back up to the sky and that is why down on earth there are so many droughts. When there is a drought, people make an image of Responding Dragon, guo Pus commentary mentions tulong 土龍 earth/clay dragon, The earthen dragons of the present day find their origin in this
16.
Luxuriant Dew of the Spring and Autumn Annals
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It is 82 chapters long and about 72,000 words, although three of the chapters within the present text have been lost, and there is considerable textual confusion in other chapters. In its current form, the deals with topics such as the five elements. One of the chapters in this book presents the concept of the source, the work cannot be considered an authentic work by Dong or even a work mostly written by him. It bears many marks of multiple authorship and is both externally contradictory with other material on Dongs thought, and inconsistent with itself. Different chapters espouse mutually contradictory cosmological schemas, and there seem to be references to the rise of Wang Mang. Whether the work was written by Dong himself has called into question since the Song dynasty. For the first time the doubt is pronounced in the Chongwen Zongmu zh, the skeptical position was argumented by scholars including Zhu Xi, Cheng Yanzuo, Dai Junren, Keimatsu Mitsuo, and Tanaka Masami. Scholars now reject as later additions all of the passages that discuss five elements theory and it seems safest to regard it as a collection of unrelated or loosely related chapters and shorter works, which could be subdivided into five categories. Most are more or less connected to the Gongyang Commentary and its school, indeed, it may be nothing more than the mislabeled remains of a book listed in the Book of Han, the 82-chapter Miscellaneous Records of the Gongyang School. Nevertheless, the Luxuriant Dew of the Spring and Autumn Annals should not be cast aside and it remains a valuable compendium of early and mid-Han Confucian thought, if properly interpreted and contextualized, and it had an influence on later thinkers. Several subdivisions have been put forward in the past in an attempt to impose some sort of order on the contents of the Luxuriant Dew of the Annals. One can divide the text into seven sections, some of which can be further divided into subsections. Section A, the Annals group, chapters 1-17, is characterized by a concentration on the meaning of Annals texts, Section B is the Huang-Lao or Daoist group. This is one of the subdivisions in the text. It is composed of the titles from 18 to 22. Chapters 24, Official regulations take Heaven as image and 28, Ranks and states, discuss official hierarchies and feudal rankings, finally,26 Clothing regulations and 27 Measured regulations lay down sumptuary rules. The chapters as a center around ethical questions, particularly casuistry, the interplay. Most have a political relevance, more or less distant, Section C3 contains three chapters dealing with epistemology
17.
Dong Zhongshu
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Dong Zhongshu was a Han Dynasty Chinese scholar. He is traditionally associated with the promotion of Confucianism as the ideology of the Chinese imperial state. Dong was born in modern Hengshui, Hebei in 179 BC and his birthplace is associated with Wencheng Township, so in the Luxuriant Dew of the Spring and Autumn Annals he is once mentioned as Lord Dong of Wencheng. He entered the service during the reign of Emperor Jing of Han. His relationship with the emperor was uneasy though, Dong Zhongshus thought integrated Yin Yang cosmology into a Confucian ethical framework. There are two works that are attributed to Dong Zhongshu, one of which is the Ju Xianliang Duice in three chapters, preserved under the Book of Han. Another of his works that has survived to the present is the Luxuriant Dew of the Spring. The Luxuriant Dew of the Spring and Autumn Annals bears many marks of multiple authorship, whether the work was written by Dong himself has been called into question by several scholars including Zhu Xi, Cheng Yanzuo, Dai Junren, Keimatsu Mitsuo, and Tanaka Masami. Scholars now reject as later additions all the passages that discuss five elements theory and it seems safest to regard it as a collection of unrelated or loosely related chapters and shorter works, which could be subdivided into five categories. Most are more or less connected to the Gongyang Commentary and its school and it has been questioned, however, how correctly Kang Youwei understood Dong Zhongshus thought. Encyclopedia of China, 1st ed. Jin, Chunfeng, Dong Zhongshu, encyclopedia of China, 1st ed. Fei, Zhengang, Dong Zhongshu. Encyclopedia of China, 1st ed. Wm. Theodore de Bary and Irene Bloom Sources of Chinese Tradition, Columbia University Press, the Scholars Frustration Reconsidered, Melancholia or Credo. Journal of the American Oriental Society 110, 434-59, arbuckle, G. Inevitable treason, Dong Zhongshus theory of historical cycles and the devalidation of the Han mandate, Journal of the American Oriental Society 115. From Chronicle to Canon, The Hermeneutics of the Spring and Autumn Annals according to Tung Chung-shu, Cambridge University Press
18.
Chinese variety art
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Chinese variety art refers to a wide range of acrobatic acts, balancing acts and other demonstrations of physical skill traditionally performed by a troupe in China. Many of these acts have a history in China and are still performed today. Elements such as clowns and large animals belong exclusively to the Western circus, Eastern elements include Shaolin monks, Peking opera characters and the Monkey King, for example. Chinese performing arts have a long history, variety show is known to existed as early as the Qin dynasty or possibly earlier. During the Qin and Han periods, Jiaodi or Baixi variety show was popular with the common people and it consisted of a variety of acts such as conjuring, acrobatics, wrestling, musical performances, dance, martial arts, horsemanship, and juggling. In the Eastern Han Dynasty, the scholar Zhang Heng was one of the first to describe the theme shows in the royal palaces in his Ode to the Western Capital. A grand acrobatic show was held by Emperor Wu of Han in 108 BC for foreign guests, the performances became more elaborate and during the Tang Dynasty, the performing arts became popular in the Emperor’s court, and the acts became more refined. Eventually, the performing arts lost favor in the Imperial Court, they moved back to the common people, during the Song Dynasty the variety shows may be performed in the entertainment centres called the wazi. Towards the end of the Ming Dynasty, the performers came off the street, during the end of the Qing Dynasty, it regained popularity with the Imperial Court and has remained a popular art form to this day. Since the founding of the Peoples Republic of China in 1949, troupes have been established in the provinces, autonomous regions, and special municipals with theaters specifically dedicated to the variety arts. Some troupes have become famous, playing to packed houses at home. It wasnt until the 1990s, however, that the art form was packaged as a theme show. The 1994 show Golden Wind of the Southwest led the way in successfully re-promoting the art as a whole, below is a list of performances available in the variety art. Some are more standard, while others are more regional, there is always new innovation taking place
19.
Zhang Heng
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Zhang Heng, formerly romanized as Chang Heng, was a Han Chinese polymath from Nanyang who lived during the Han dynasty. Zhang Heng began his career as a civil servant in Nanyang. Eventually, he became Chief Astronomer, Prefect of the Majors for Official Carriages and his uncompromising stance on historical and calendrical issues led to his becoming a controversial figure, preventing him from rising to the status of Grand Historian. His political rivalry with the palace eunuchs during the reign of Emperor Shun led to his decision to retire from the court to serve as an administrator of Hejian in Hebei. Zhang returned home to Nanyang for a time, before being recalled to serve in the capital once more in 138. He died there a year later, in 139, Zhang applied his extensive knowledge of mechanics and gears in several of his inventions. He improved previous Chinese calculations for pi and his fu and shi poetry were renowned in his time and studied and analyzed by later Chinese writers. Zhang received many honors for his scholarship and ingenuity, some modern scholars have compared his work in astronomy to that of the Greco-Roman Ptolemy. Born in the town of Xie in Nanyang Commandery, Zhang Heng came from a distinguished, at age ten, Zhangs father died, leaving him in the care of his mother and grandmother. An accomplished writer in his youth, Zhang left home in the year 95 to pursue his studies in the capitals of Changan, while traveling to Luoyang, Zhang passed by a hot spring near Mount Li and dedicated one of his earliest fu poems to it. Government authorities offered Zhang appointments to offices, including a position as one of the Imperial Secretaries, yet he acted modestly. At age twenty-three, he returned home with the title Officer of Merit in Nanyang, serving as the master of documents under the administration of Governor Bao De, as he was charged with composing inscriptions and dirges for the governor, he gained experience in writing official documents. As Officer of Merit in the commandery, he was responsible for local appointments to office. He spent much of his time composing rhapsodies on the capital cities, when Bao De was recalled to the capital in 111 to serve as a minister of finance, Zhang continued his literary work at home in Xie. Zhang Heng began his studies in astronomy at the age of thirty and began publishing his works on astronomy, in 112, Zhang was summoned to the court of Emperor An, who had heard of his expertise in mathematics. When he was nominated to serve at the capital, Zhang was escorted by carriage—a symbol of his official status—to Luoyang and he was promoted to Chief Astronomer for the court, serving his first term from 115–120 under Emperor An and his second under the succeeding emperor from 126–132. As Chief Astronomer, Zhang was a subordinate of the Minister of Ceremonies, when the government official Dan Song proposed the Chinese calendar should be reformed in 123 to adopt certain apocryphal teachings, Zhang opposed the idea. He considered the teachings to be of questionable stature and believed they could introduce errors, others shared Zhangs opinion and the calendar was not altered, yet Zhangs proposal that apocryphal writings should be banned was rejected
20.
Tang dynasty
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The Tang dynasty was an imperial dynasty of China preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. It is generally regarded as a point in Chinese civilization. Its territory, acquired through the campaigns of its early rulers, rivaled that of the Han dynasty. The dynasty was founded by the Lǐ family, who seized power during the decline, the dynasty was briefly interrupted when Empress Wu Zetian seized the throne, proclaiming the Second Zhou dynasty and becoming the only Chinese empress regnant. In two censuses of the 7th and 8th centuries, the Tang records estimated the population by number of registered households at about 50 million people. Various kingdoms and states paid tribute to the Tang court, while the Tang also conquered or subdued several regions which it controlled through a protectorate system. Besides political hegemony, the Tang also exerted a powerful influence over neighboring states such as those in Korea, Japan. Like the previous Sui dynasty, the Tang dynasty maintained a service system by recruiting scholar-officials through standardized examinations and recommendations to office. This civil order was undermined by the rise of military governors known as jiedushi during the 9th century. Chinese culture flourished and further matured during the Tang era, it is considered the greatest age for Chinese poetry. Two of Chinas most famous poets, Li Bai and Du Fu, belonged to this age, as did many famous painters such as Han Gan, Zhang Xuan, there was a rich variety of historical literature compiled by scholars, as well as encyclopedias and geographical works. The adoption of the title Tängri Qaghan by the Tang Emperor Taizong in addition to his title as emperor was eastern Asias first simultaneous kingship, there were many notable innovations during the Tang, including the development of woodblock printing. Buddhism became an influence in Chinese culture, with native Chinese sects gaining prominence. However, Buddhism would later be persecuted by the state, subsequently declining in influence, although the dynasty and central government were in decline by the 9th century, art and culture continued to flourish. This family was known as the Longxi Li lineage, which includes the Tang poet Li Bai, the Tang Emperors also had Xianbei maternal ancestry, from Emperor Gaozu of Tangs Xianbei mother Duchess Dugu. He had prestige and military experience, and was a first cousin of Emperor Yang of Sui, Li Yuan rose in rebellion in 617, along with his son and his equally militant daughter Princess Pingyang, who raised and commanded her own troops. In winter 617, Li Yuan occupied Changan, relegated Emperor Yang to the position of Taishang Huang or retired emperor, and acted as regent to the puppet child-emperor, Emperor Gong of Sui. On the news of Emperor Yangs murder by General Yuwen Huaji on June 18,618, Li Yuan declared himself the emperor of a new dynasty, the Tang
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Song dynasty
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The Song dynasty was an era of Chinese history that began in 960 and continued until 1279. It succeeded the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period, coincided with the Liao and Western Xia dynasties and it was the first government in world history to issue banknotes or true paper money nationally and the first Chinese government to establish a permanent standing navy. This dynasty also saw the first known use of gunpowder, as well as the first discernment of true north using a compass, the Song dynasty is divided into two distinct periods, Northern and Southern. During the Northern Song, the Song capital was in the city of Bianjing. The Southern Song refers to the period after the Song lost control of its half to the Jurchen Jin dynasty in the Jin–Song Wars. During this time, the Song court retreated south of the Yangtze, the Southern Song dynasty considerably bolstered its naval strength to defend its waters and land borders and to conduct maritime missions abroad. To repel the Jin, and later the Mongols, the Song developed revolutionary new military technology augmented by the use of gunpowder, in 1234, the Jin dynasty was conquered by the Mongols, who took control of northern China, maintaining uneasy relations with the Southern Song. Möngke Khan, the fourth Great Khan of the Mongol Empire and his younger brother Kublai Khan was proclaimed the new Great Khan, though his claim was only partially recognized by the Mongols in the west. In 1271, Kublai Khan was proclaimed the Emperor of China, after two decades of sporadic warfare, Kublai Khans armies conquered the Song dynasty in 1279. The Mongol invasion led to a reunification under the Yuan dynasty, the population of China doubled in size during the 10th and 11th centuries. The Northern Song census recorded a population of roughly 50 million, much like the Han and this data is found in the Standard Histories. However, it is estimated that the Northern Song had a population of some 100 million people and this dramatic increase of population fomented an economic revolution in pre-modern China. The expansion of the population, growth of cities, and the emergence of a national economy led to the withdrawal of the central government from direct involvement in economic affairs. The lower gentry assumed a role in grassroots administration and local affairs. Appointed officials in county and provincial centers relied upon the gentry for their services, sponsorship. Social life during the Song was vibrant, citizens gathered to view and trade precious artworks, the populace intermingled at public festivals and private clubs, and cities had lively entertainment quarters. The spread of literature and knowledge was enhanced by the expansion of woodblock printing. Technology, science, philosophy, mathematics, and engineering flourished over the course of the Song, although the institution of the civil service examinations had existed since the Sui dynasty, it became much more prominent in the Song period
22.
Lantern Festival
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The Lantern Festival or the Spring Lantern Festival is a Chinese festival celebrated on the fifteenth day of the first month in the lunisolar Chinese calendar. It marks the day of the traditional Chinese New Year celebrations. As early as the Western Han Dynasty, it had become a festival with great significance, during the Lantern Festival, children go out at night to temples carrying paper lanterns and solve riddles on the lanterns. In ancient times, the lanterns were fairly simple, and only the emperor, in modern times, lanterns have been embellished with many complex designs. For example, lanterns are now made in the shape of animals. The lanterns can symbolize the people letting go of their past selves and getting new ones, the lanterns are almost always red to symbolize good fortune. In Hong Kong and Taiwan, it is commercialized as the Chinese equivalent of Valentines Day and it is not to be confused with the Mid-Autumn Festival, which is sometimes also known as the Lantern Festival in locations such as Singapore and Malaysia. Now the Chinese Lantern Festival is becoming popular in Western countries, in London, the United Kingdom has the Magical Lantern Festival. The first month of the Chinese Lunar month is called the yuan month, the fifteenth day is the first full moon of that lunisolar year. People will try to solve puzzles on lanterns, eat lots of food like rice balls named after the festival, (also known as tangyuan. There are many different beliefs about the origin of the Lantern Festival, however, one likely origin is the celebration of the declining darkness of winter and communitys ability to move about at night with human-made light, namely, lanterns. During the Han Dynasty, the festival was connected to Ti Yin, one legend tells us that it was a time to worship Taiyi, the God of Heaven in ancient times. The belief was that the God of Heaven controlled the destiny of the human world and he had sixteen dragons at his beck and call and he decided when to inflict drought, storms, famine or pestilence upon human beings. Beginning with Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China, the emperor would ask Taiyi to bring favorable weather and good health to him and his people. Wudi of the Han Dynasty directed special attention to this event, in 104 BCE, he proclaimed it to be one of the most important celebrations and the ceremony would last throughout the night. Another legend associates the Lantern Festival with Taoism, Tianguan is the Taoist god responsible for good fortune. His birthday falls on the day of the first lunar month. It is said that Tianguan likes all types of entertainment, so followers prepare various kinds of activities during which they pray for good fortune, another legend associates the Lantern Festival with an ancient warrior name Lan Moon, who led a rebellion against the tyrannical king in ancient China
23.
Dongjing Meng Hua Lu
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Dongjing meng Hua lu or The Eastern Capital, A Dream of Splendor, is a memoir written by Meng Yuanlao. Mengs book is a detailed and nostalgic description of the old capitals urban life, seasonal products, and festivals, as well as foods, customs, in later dynasties, the book was much imitated and taken as an authoritative picture of affluent Chinese culture. Nothing else is known of the author, evidently a minor government official and his book was first printed in 1187, but the Preface is dated 1147, a number of years after the capital was moved, indicating that Meng started a draft at this point. The work was published in 10 volumes and traditional bibliographers classified it as travel writing and it is often cited under the abbreviated name, Meng Hua lu. The literal meaning of the title is Dongjing, meng, Hua lu, the allusion is to the Yellow Emperors dream of the land of Hua Xu, a sphere of perfect joy and harmony, where people knew no fear, selfishness, avarice, or pain. When he awoke, the Yellow Emperor came to the realization that the Way could not be achieved through the passions, by using the term, Meng Yuanlao in ironic contrast implies that he himself awoke to a world of perfect shambles. In China dreams are used as figures for the past. Other uses of the word meng in Chinese literature include the 18th century novel, Honglou Meng and the 13th century essay, Mengliang lu, which is modeled on Menghua lu. Mengs Preface tells the reader of the old capital, Peace stretched on day after day, people were many, youths with trailing locks practiced naught but drumming and dancing, the aged with white speckled recognized neither shield nor spear. Season and festival followed one upon the other, each with its own sights to enjoy, lamplit nights there were and moonlit eves, periods of snow and times of blossoming, beseeching skills and climbing heights, training reservoirs and gardens to roam in. Raise the eyes and there were green bowers and painted chambers, embroidered gates, decorated chariots vied to park in the Heavenly Avenue and bejeweled horses competed to spur through the Imperial Street. Gold and kingfisher dazzled the eye, silky cloth and silken gauze let float their perfumes, New sounds and sly giggles were found in the willowy lanes and flowered paths, pipes were fingered and strings were harmonized in the tea districts and wine wards. The preface boasts, The treasures and curiosities from around the world are gathered here, the exquisite scents from all over the world were to be found here. Meng must have been placed and had enough money to take advantage of the citys pleasures. He also describes imperial rituals, although he may have heard of them second hand, the scholar Wu Pei-yi writes that what distinguishes the book from other writings on cities is its detailed description of everyday life as it was lived in the streets and marketplaces. Food and drink seem to have been everyones preoccupation, Meng delights in street entertainments which serious writers disdained, even mentioning the performers by name, Wildman Zhao would eat and drink while hung upside down. Hua Zhuoer would sing medleys, Big Head Wen and Little Cao would play the lute, zou Yi and Tian Di would impersonate rustic visitors to the capital. The descriptions of food include over one hundred famous dishes and snacks, local specialties, street snacks, as well as reflections on famous taverns, restaurants, pasta, the book is thus an important source for the history of Chinese food and drinking culture
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Fenghua District
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Fenghua is a district in the north of Zhejiang Province, China. It is under the jurisdiction of Ningbo prefecture-level city, the district and its administrative hinterlands has a population of over 480,000. Fenghua is most famous for being the hometown of Generalissimo and President Chiang Kai-shek, geographically, it is dominated by the Tiantai and Siming mountain ranges. Fenghua was established as a county in the Tang dynasty, in the territory of Mingzhou and its name means Accepting Reform and adopted during imperial times. During the Song dynasty, immigration from the north increased exponentially, in 1129, Fenghua was raided by Jurchen cavalry in pursuit of Emperor Gaozong. Local militia at Xiaowangmiao fought off the invaders, in late imperial times, Fenghua established itself as a meeting point for trade between the agrarian communities to the north, in Yinxian, and the mountain-based communities in the south. In exchange for grain and cereals, the hill peoples would trade bamboo, timber and other crops such as tea. In the east of Fenghua, around Xiangshan, there existed also a number of fishing communities, as with the rest of China, the 19th century brought about tumultuous changes. The Opium Wars with Britain devastated the economies of the coast, around this time, many Fenghua men sought opportunity in the rising cities of Harbin, Weihaiwei and Shanghai. They later became famous in the 1920s for their dominance of the profession in downtown Shanghai. But by far Fenghuas most famous export was Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek, leader of the Kuomintang, Chiangs family were originally salt merchants in the township of Xikou, a town in the west of Fenghua district. Fenghua has 5 subdistricts and 6 towns, subdistricts, Jinping Yuelin Jiangkou Xiwu Xiaowangmiao Towns, Xikou Chunhu Shangtian Dayan Qiucun Songao Today, Fenghua is a centre for light manufacturing and small scale farming. It boasts a number of garment and textiles factories, including the Romon brand widely recognised in China. It is also home to the vast industrial facilities of Ningbo Bird, as the port city of Ningbo is further integrated into the burgeoning economic region of Shanghai, Fenghua will attract increased foreign investment and continue to grow. In 2008, the gross domestic product was RMB18.8 billion. Largely as a result of Chiangs fame, Fenghua attracts a number of tourists. Aside from Chiangs former residence and related nostalgia, Fenghua has relatively few relics from the past, the great Xuedou Temple, once one of the ten great monasteries of Chan Buddhism, was destroyed during the Cultural Revolution. Other sites, along with numerous shrines, clan halls and genealogies
25.
Zhejiang
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Zhejiang, formerly romanized as Chekiang, is an eastern coastal province of China. The provinces name derives from the Zhe River, the name of the Qiantang River which flows past Hangzhou. Kuahuqiao culture was a neolithic culture that flourished in Hangzhou area in 6. Zhejiang was the site of the Neolithic cultures of the Hemudu, the area of modern Zhejiang was outside the major sphere of influence of the Shang civilization during the second millennium BC. Instead, this area was populated by peoples known as Dongyue. The kingdom of Yue began to appear in the chronicles and records written during the Spring, according to the chronicles, the kingdom of Yue was in northern Zhejiang. Shiji claims that its leaders were descended from the Shang founder Yu the Great, the Song of the Yue Boatman was transliterated into Chinese and recorded by authors in north China or inland China of Hebei and Henan around 528 BC. The song shows that the Yue people spoke a language that was mutually unintelligible with the dialects spoken in north, the Sword of Goujian bears bird-worm seal script. Yuenü was a swordswoman from the state of Yue, to check the growth of the kingdom of Wu, Chu pursued a policy of strengthening Yue. Under King Goujian, Yue recovered from its early reverses and fully annexed the lands of its rival in 473 BC, the Yue kings then moved their capital center from their original home around Mount Kuaiji in present-day Shaoxing to the former Wu capital at present-day Suzhou. With no southern power to turn against Yue, Chu opposed it directly and, in 333 BC, yues former lands were annexed by the Qin Empire in 222 BC and organized into a commandery named for Kuaiji in Zhejiang but initially headquartered in Wu in Jiangsu. Kuaiji Commandery was the power base for Xiang Liang and Xiang Yus rebellion against the Qin Empire which initially succeeded in restoring the kingdom of Chu. At the beginning of the Three Kingdoms era, Zhejiang was home to the warlords Yan Baihu and Wang Lang prior to their defeat by Sun Ce and Sun Quan, who eventually established the Kingdom of Wu. Despite the removal of their court from Kuaiji to Jianye, they continued development of the region, industrial kilns were established and trade reached as far as Manchuria and Funan. Zhejiang was part of the Wu during the Three Kingdoms, Wu, commonly known as Eastern Wu or Sun Wu, had been the economically most developed state among the Three Kingdoms. The historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms records that Zhejiang had the best-equipped, the story depicts how the states of Wei and Shu, lack of material resources, avoided direct confrontation with the Wu. In armed military conflicts with Wu, the two states relied intensively on tactics of camouflage and deception to steal Wus military resources including arrows and bows, the other two centers in the south were Jiankang and Chengdu. In 589, Qiantang was raised in status and renamed Hangzhou, some may have lost social privilege, and took refugee in areas south to Yangtze River
26.
Tongliang District
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Tongliang District is a district of Chongqing Municipality in China. On 6 June 2014 Tongliang was upgraded from a county into a district within Chongqing, twenty-eight people were injured in the blast. The attack happened on the anniversary of the Zhaodong massacre. Chongqing Tongliang NO.1 Experimental Primary School is among the best primary schools of Chongqing, Chongqing Tongliang NO.2 Experimental Primary School is in this district. Chongqing Bachuan International High School is a school in the district. Tongliang Zhong Xue is the best high school in Tongliang district and it has a long history and have cultivated a large amount of talents for the top Universities in China. Official website of Tongliang County Government
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Ming dynasty
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The Ming dynasty was the ruling dynasty of China – then known as the Empire of the Great Ming – for 276 years following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming, described by some as one of the greatest eras of orderly government, although the primary capital of Beijing fell in 1644 to a rebellion led by Li Zicheng, regimes loyal to the Ming throne – collectively called the Southern Ming – survived until 1683. He rewarded his supporters and employed them as a counterweight against the Confucian scholar-bureaucrats. One, Zheng He, led seven enormous voyages of exploration into the Indian Ocean as far as Arabia, the rise of new emperors and new factions diminished such extravagances, the capture of the Zhengtong Emperor during the 1449 Tumu Crisis ended them completely. The imperial navy was allowed to fall into disrepair while forced labor constructed the Liaodong palisade, haijin laws intended to protect the coasts from Japanese pirates instead turned many into smugglers and pirates themselves. The growth of Portuguese, Spanish, and Dutch trade created new demand for Chinese products and produced an influx of Japanese. This abundance of specie remonetized the Ming economy, whose money had suffered repeated hyperinflation and was no longer trusted. While traditional Confucians opposed such a prominent role for commerce and the newly rich it created, combined with crop failure, floods, and epidemic, the dynasty collapsed before the rebel leader Li Zicheng, who was defeated by the Manchu-led Eight Banner armies who founded the Qing dynasty. The Mongol-led Yuan dynasty ruled before the establishment of the Ming dynasty, consequently, agriculture and the economy were in shambles, and rebellion broke out among the hundreds of thousands of peasants called upon to work on repairing the dykes of the Yellow River. A number of Han Chinese groups revolted, including the Red Turbans in 1351, the Red Turbans were affiliated with the White Lotus, a Buddhist secret society. Zhu Yuanzhang was a peasant and Buddhist monk who joined the Red Turbans in 1352. In 1356, Zhus rebel force captured the city of Nanjing, with the Yuan dynasty crumbling, competing rebel groups began fighting for control of the country and thus the right to establish a new dynasty. In 1363, Zhu Yuanzhang eliminated his archrival and leader of the rebel Han faction, Chen Youliang, in the Battle of Lake Poyang, arguably the largest naval battle in history. Known for its ambitious use of ships, Zhus force of 200,000 Ming sailors were able to defeat a Han rebel force over triple their size, claimed to be 650. The victory destroyed the last opposing rebel faction, leaving Zhu Yuanzhang in uncontested control of the bountiful Yangtze River Valley, Zhu Yuanzhang took Hongwu, or Vastly Martial, as his era name. Hongwu made an effort to rebuild state infrastructure. He built a 48 km long wall around Nanjing, as well as new palaces, Hongwu organized a military system known as the weisuo, which was similar to the fubing system of the Tang dynasty. With a growing suspicion of his ministers and subjects, Hongwu established the Jinyiwei, some 100,000 people were executed in a series of purges during his rule
28.
Qing dynasty
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It was preceded by the Ming dynasty and succeeded by the Republic of China. The Qing multi-cultural empire lasted almost three centuries and formed the base for the modern Chinese state. The dynasty was founded by the Jurchen Aisin Gioro clan in Manchuria, in the late sixteenth century, Nurhaci, originally a Ming vassal, began organizing Banners, military-social units that included Jurchen, Han Chinese, and Mongol elements. Nurhaci formed the Jurchen clans into an entity, which he renamed as the Manchus. By 1636, his son Hong Taiji began driving Ming forces out of Liaodong and declared a new dynasty, in 1644, peasant rebels led by Li Zicheng conquered the Ming capital, Beijing. The Ten Great Campaigns of the Qianlong Emperor from the 1750s to the 1790s extended Qing control into Central Asia, the early rulers maintained their Manchu ways, and while their title was Emperor, they used khan to the Mongols and they were patrons of Tibetan Buddhism. They governed using Confucian styles and institutions of government and retained the imperial examinations to recruit Han Chinese to work under or in parallel with Manchus. They also adapted the ideals of the system in dealing with neighboring territories. The Qianlong reign saw the apogee and initial decline in prosperity. The population rose to some 400 million, but taxes and government revenues were fixed at a low rate, corruption set in, rebels tested government legitimacy, and ruling elites did not change their mindsets in the face of changes in the world system. Following the Opium War, European powers imposed unequal treaties, free trade, the Taiping Rebellion and the Dungan Revolt in Central Asia led to the deaths of some 20 million people, most of them due to famines caused by war. In spite of disasters, in the Tongzhi Restoration of the 1860s, Han Chinese elites rallied to the defense of the Confucian order. The initial gains in the Self-Strengthening Movement were destroyed in the First Sino-Japanese War of 1895, in which the Qing lost its influence over Korea, New Armies were organized, but the ambitious Hundred Days Reform of 1898 was turned back by Empress Dowager Cixi, a conservative leader. Sun Yat-sen and other revolutionaries competed with reformist monarchists such as Kang Youwei, after the deaths of Cixi and the Guangxu Emperor in 1908, the hardline Manchu court alienated reformers and local elites alike. The Wuchang Uprising on October 11,1911, led to the Xinhai Revolution, General Yuan Shikai negotiated the abdication of Puyi, the last emperor, on February 12,1912. Nurhaci declared himself the Bright Khan of the Later Jin state in both of the 12–13th century Jurchen Jin dynasty and of his Aisin Gioro clan. His son Hong Taiji renamed the dynasty Great Qing in 1636, there are competing explanations on the meaning of Qīng. The character Qīng is composed of water and azure, both associated with the water element and this association would justify the Qing conquest as defeat of fire by water
29.
Zhanjiang
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Zhanjiang, is a prefecture-level city at the southwestern end of Guangdong province, Peoples Republic of China, facing Hainan to the south. Its population was 6,994,832 inhabitants at the 2010 census,1,611,868 live in the built-up area made of four urban districts, Chikan, Xiashan, Potou and Mazhang. In 2007, the city is named Chinas top ten cities by Chinese Cities Brand Value Report. During the Qin Dynasty, the area belonged to Xiang Shire, the central government of the Han Dynasty set Xuwen County administering the whole Leizhou Peninsula. It was one of the earliest departure points on the Marine Silk Road, the population spiked during the Tang and Song dynasties. The region was still a fishing port when it was occupied by the French in 1898. The next year, the French forced the Chinese to lease a small enclave of Zhanjiang to them for 99 years as the territory of Kouang-Tchéou-Wan. The French wanted to develop the port, which they called Fort-Bayard, to serve southern China, in parts where France had exclusive rights to railway and their efforts, however, were hindered by the poverty of the surrounding land. The French retained control of the region until 1943, when the Japanese occupied the area during World War II. At the end of the war, the region returned briefly under French rule before being returned to China in 1946 by General Charles de Gaulle. Upon receiving the territory from the French, the Republic of China government decided to rename Kouang-Tchéou-Wan, the area was historically under the jurisdiction of Zhanchuan county, with a Zhanchuan customs post on the eastern island of the territory. As Zhanjiang was a variant of Zhanjiang, it was decided to name the city Zhanjiang. Following the establishment of the Peoples Republic in 1949, Zhanjiang developed new importance, in 1955 a rail link was built to Litang in Guangxi province, where it joined the Hunan-Guangxi Railway. Since then, Zhanjiang has developed into a modern port serving southern China. In 1984 Zhanjiang was designated one of the cities of China, where the central government invited foreign investment. It has shipyards and engineering works, automobile, electrical-appliance, and textile plants, and sugar refineries, flour and rice mills, in the early 1990s a new rail line was completed, linking Zhanjiang with Guangzhou, the provincial capital. The line was extended to Haian, at the southernmost tip of Leizhou Peninsula. Until the introduction of Pinyin spelling, it was known in the west as Tsamkiang, Chankiang or Tsamkong
30.
Guangdong
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Guangdong is a province on the South China Sea coast of the Peoples Republic of China. The provincial capital Guangzhou and economic hub Shenzhen are among the most populous, the population increase since the census has been modest, the province at 2014 end had 107,240,000 people. Since 1989, Guangdong has topped the total GDP rankings among all divisions, with Jiangsu and Shandong second. According to state statistics, Guangdongs GDP in 2014 reached RMB6,779 billion, or US$1.104 trillion, since 2011, Guangdong has the highest GDP among all provinces of Mainland China. The province contributes approximately 12% of the PRCs national economic output, Guangdong also hosts the largest import and export fair in China called the Canton Fair in Guangdongs capital city Guangzhou. Guǎng means expanse or vast, and has associated with the region since the creation of Guang Prefecture in AD226. Guangdong and neighbouring Guangxi literally mean expanse east and expanse west, together, Guangdong and Guangxi are called Loeng gwong. During the Song dynasty, the Two Guangs were formally separated as Guǎngnán Dōnglù and Guǎngnán Xīlù, one should note that Canton, though etymologically derived from Cantão, refers only to the provincial capital instead of the whole province, as documented by authoritative English dictionaries. The local people of the city of Guangzhou and their language are commonly referred to as Cantonese in English. Because of the prestige of Canton and its accent, Cantonese sensu lato can also be used for the phylogenetically related residents, Chinese administration and reliable historical records in the region began with the Qin dynasty. After establishing the first unified Chinese empire, the Qin expanded southwards and set up Nanhai Commandery at Panyu, the region was independent as Nanyue between the fall of Qin and the reign of Emperor Wu of Han. Under the Wu Kingdom of the Three Kingdoms period, Guangdong was made its own province, for example, internal strife in northern China following the rebellion of An Lushan resulted in a 75% increase in the population of Guangzhou prefecture between 740s–750s and 800s–810s. As more migrants arrived, the population was gradually assimilated to Han Chinese culture or displaced. Multiple women originating from the Persian Gulf lived in Guangzhous foreign quarter, together with Guangxi, Guangdong was made part of Lingnan Circuit, or Mountain-South Circuit, in 627 during the Tang dynasty. The Guangdong part of Lingnan Circuit was renamed Guangnan East Circuit guǎng nán dōng lù in 971 during the Song dynasty, Guangnan East is the source of Guangdong. As Mongols from the north engaged in their conquest of China in the 13th century, the Battle of Yamen 1279 in Guangdong marked the end of the Southern Song Dynasty. During the Mongol Yuan dynasty, large parts of current Guangdong belonged to Jiangxi and its present name, Guangdong Province was given in early Ming dynasty. Since the 16th century, Guangdong has had extensive links with the rest of the world
31.
Sun Loong
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Sun Loong is believed to be the longest imperial dragon in the world measuring approximately 100 metres. An example of the used in the traditional Chinese dragon dance. Sun Loong is in the city of Bendigo on permanent display at the Golden Dragon Museum, dragons are an important part of Chinese culture. Large processional dragons have been used in Chinese festivals for over a thousand years, after Chinese came to Bendigo in the 1850s for the gold rush many settled and later in the 1870s the Chinese community became a part of the annual Bendigo Easter Festival. It was in this parade that the local Chinese started bringing their old dragon dancing traditions, Bendigo has had Chinese dragons in the city since at least the 1890s. Grand processional dragons became a big part of the Easter Parade, by the late 1960s the dragon Loong was getting older and an effort to raise money for a new dragon began. The Loong 100 Committee of local Bendigo businessmen were instrumental in raising the money for the purchase of Sun Loong, a traditional dragon maker was found in Hong Kong, a man called Lo On Kee. He agreed to build Bendigo the longest imperial dragon in the world, Sun Loong was originally over 100 feet long. Bendigo was very proud of the fact he was the longest imperial dragon in the southern hemisphere, however, in 1980 the Chinese in Melbourne purchased Dai Loong. A processional dragon they intended to be a few longer than Sun Loong. James Lew, a 101-year-old Chinese elder brought Sun Loong to life by dotting his eyes with blood in 1970. Golden Dragon Museum website Sun Loongs Facebook page
32.
Bendigo
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Bendigo /ˈbɛndᵻɡoʊ/ is a city in Victoria, Australia, located very close to the geographical centre of the state and approximately 150 kilometres north west of the state capital, Melbourne. As of June 2015, Bendigo had an population of 92,888, making it the fourth largest inland city in Australia. The discovery of gold in the soils of Bendigo during the 1850s made it one of the most significant Victorian era boomtowns in Australia, once the alluvial gold had been mined out, mining companies were formed to exploit the rich underground quartz reef gold. It is also notable for its Victorian architectural heritage, the city took its name from the Bendigo Creek and its residents from the earliest days of the goldrush have been called Bendigonians. Although the town flourished in its beginnings as a result of the discovery of gold, however, its growth accelerated in the post-war years and has continued to increase steadily since. Bendigo is the largest finance centre in Victoria outside Melbourne as home to Australias only provincially headquartered retail bank, the original inhabitants of the Mount Alexander area that includes Greater Bendigo were the Dja Dja Wurrung people, who exploited the rich local hunting grounds. These grounds were eventually noticed by white settlers, who established the first of many vast sheep-runs in 1837, the Mount Alexander North sheep-run was bordered by a creek that came to be known as Bendigo, after a local shepherd nicknamed for the English bare-knuckle prizefighter William Abednego Thompson. In 1853, there was a massive protest over the cost of the fee for prospectors, though it passed off peacefully, thanks to good diplomacy by police. From being a tent-city, the boomtown grew rapidly into an urban centre with many grand public buildings. The municipality became a borough in 1863, officially known as Sandhurst until 1891, when the alluvial gold ran out, the goldfields evolved into major mines with deep shafts to mine the quartz-based gold. Bendigo was declared a city in 1871, rapid population growth brought a water shortage, partially solved with a new viaduct that harnessed the Coliban River. The architect William Charles Vahland left an important mark on Bendigo during this period and he is credited with the popular cottage design with verandahs decorated in iron lace, a style that was soon adopted right across the state of Victoria. Vahland also designed more than 80 buildings, including the Alexandra Fountain, arguably the most prominent monument in Bendigo, with its granite dolphins, unicorns, nymphs, a tram network was in use by 1890. After a temporary drop in population, there was renewed growth from the 1930s, as the city consolidated as a manufacturing and regional service centre, recent growth has been most heavily concentrated in areas such as Epsom, Kangaroo Flat, Strathdale and Strathfieldsaye. In 1994 the City of Bendigo was abolished and merged with the Borough of Eaglehawk, the Huntly and Strathfieldsaye shires, the population of the city increased from around 78,000 in 1991 to about 100,617 in 2012. Bendigo is currently one of the fastest growing regional centres in Victoria, the City of Greater Bendigo includes Victorias fourth largest city in Bendigo, as well as a significant rural hinterland. Smaller townships are located at Axedale, Elmore, Goornong, Heathcote, Marong, the city encompasses a total land area of 3,000 square kilometres, of which a significant proportion is national park, regional park, reserve or bushland. Much of the land is used for agricultural purposes, including poultry and pig farming, sheep and cattle grazing
33.
Australia
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Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and numerous smaller islands. It is the worlds sixth-largest country by total area, the neighbouring countries are Papua New Guinea, Indonesia and East Timor to the north, the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu to the north-east, and New Zealand to the south-east. Australias capital is Canberra, and its largest urban area is Sydney, for about 50,000 years before the first British settlement in the late 18th century, Australia was inhabited by indigenous Australians, who spoke languages classifiable into roughly 250 groups. The population grew steadily in subsequent decades, and by the 1850s most of the continent had been explored, on 1 January 1901, the six colonies federated, forming the Commonwealth of Australia. Australia has since maintained a liberal democratic political system that functions as a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy comprising six states. The population of 24 million is highly urbanised and heavily concentrated on the eastern seaboard, Australia has the worlds 13th-largest economy and ninth-highest per capita income. With the second-highest human development index globally, the country highly in quality of life, health, education, economic freedom. The name Australia is derived from the Latin Terra Australis a name used for putative lands in the southern hemisphere since ancient times, the Dutch adjectival form Australische was used in a Dutch book in Batavia in 1638, to refer to the newly discovered lands to the south. On 12 December 1817, Macquarie recommended to the Colonial Office that it be formally adopted, in 1824, the Admiralty agreed that the continent should be known officially as Australia. The first official published use of the term Australia came with the 1830 publication of The Australia Directory and these first inhabitants may have been ancestors of modern Indigenous Australians. The Torres Strait Islanders, ethnically Melanesian, were originally horticulturists, the northern coasts and waters of Australia were visited sporadically by fishermen from Maritime Southeast Asia. The first recorded European sighting of the Australian mainland, and the first recorded European landfall on the Australian continent, are attributed to the Dutch. The first ship and crew to chart the Australian coast and meet with Aboriginal people was the Duyfken captained by Dutch navigator, Willem Janszoon. He sighted the coast of Cape York Peninsula in early 1606, the Dutch charted the whole of the western and northern coastlines and named the island continent New Holland during the 17th century, but made no attempt at settlement. William Dampier, an English explorer and privateer, landed on the north-west coast of New Holland in 1688, in 1770, James Cook sailed along and mapped the east coast, which he named New South Wales and claimed for Great Britain. The first settlement led to the foundation of Sydney, and the exploration, a British settlement was established in Van Diemens Land, now known as Tasmania, in 1803, and it became a separate colony in 1825. The United Kingdom formally claimed the part of Western Australia in 1828. Separate colonies were carved from parts of New South Wales, South Australia in 1836, Victoria in 1851, the Northern Territory was founded in 1911 when it was excised from South Australia
34.
Hong Kong
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Hong Kong, officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the Peoples Republic of China, is an autonomous territory on the Pearl River Delta of East Asia. Macau lies across the delta to the west, and the Chinese province of Guangdong borders the territory to the north. With a total area of 1,106 square kilometres. Hong Kong was later occupied by Japan during World War II until British control resumed in 1945, under the principle of one country, two systems, Hong Kong maintains a separate political and economic system from China. Except in military defence and foreign affairs, Hong Kong maintains its independent executive, legislative, in addition, Hong Kong develops relations directly with foreign states and international organisations in a broad range of appropriate fields. Hong Kong is one of the worlds most significant financial centres, with the highest Financial Development Index score and consistently ranks as the worlds most competitive and freest economic entity. As the worlds 8th largest trading entity, its legal tender, Hong Kongs tertiary sector dominated economy is characterised by simple taxation with a competitive level of corporate tax and supported by its independent judiciary system. However, while Hong Kong has one of the highest per capita incomes in the world and it has a very high Human Development Index ranking and the worlds longest life expectancy. Over 90% of the population use of well-developed public transportation. Seasonal air pollution with origins from neighbouring areas of Mainland China. Hong Kong was officially recorded in the 1842 Treaty of Nanking to encompass the entirety of the island, before 1842, the name referred to a small inlet—now Aberdeen Harbour, literally means Little Hong Kong)—between Aberdeen Island and the southern coast of Hong Kong Island. Aberdeen was a point of contact between British sailors and local fishermen. Detailed and accurate romanisation systems for Cantonese were available and in use at the time, fragrance may refer to the sweet taste of the harbours fresh water estuarine influx of the Pearl River or to the incense from factories lining the coast of northern Kowloon. The incense was stored near Aberdeen Harbour for export before Hong Kong developed Victoria Harbour, the name had often been written as the single word Hongkong until the government adopted the current form in 1926. Nevertheless, a number of century-old institutions still retain the form, such as the Hongkong Post, Hongkong Electric. As of 1997, its name is the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the Peoples Republic of China. This is the title as mentioned in the Hong Kong Basic Law. Hong Kong has carried many nicknames, the most famous among those is the Pearl of the Orient, which reflected the impressive nightscape of the citys light decorations on the skyscrapers along both sides of the Victoria Harbour
35.
Melbourne
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Melbourne is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in Australia and Oceania. The name Melbourne refers to an urban agglomeration spanning 9,900 km2, the metropolis is located on the large natural bay of Port Phillip and expands into the hinterlands towards the Dandenong and Macedon mountain ranges, Mornington Peninsula and Yarra Valley. It has a population of 4,641,636 as of 2016, and its inhabitants are called Melburnians. Founded by free settlers from the British Crown colony of Van Diemens Land on 30 August 1835, in what was then the colony of New South Wales, it was incorporated as a Crown settlement in 1837. It was named Melbourne by the Governor of New South Wales, Sir Richard Bourke, in honour of the British Prime Minister of the day, William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne. It was officially declared a city by Queen Victoria, to whom Lord Melbourne was close, in 1847, during the Victorian gold rush of the 1850s, it was transformed into one of the worlds largest and wealthiest cities. After the federation of Australia in 1901, it served as the interim seat of government until 1927. It is a financial centre in the Asia-Pacific region. It is recognised as a UNESCO City of Literature and a centre for street art, music. It was the host city of the 1956 Summer Olympics and the 2006 Commonwealth Games, the main passenger airport serving the metropolis and the state is Melbourne Airport, the second busiest in Australia. The Port of Melbourne is Australias busiest seaport for containerised and general cargo, Melbourne has an extensive transport network. The main metropolitan train terminus is Flinders Street Station, and the regional train. Melbourne is also home to Australias most extensive network and has the worlds largest urban tram network. Before the arrival of settlers, humans had occupied the area for an estimated 31,000 to 40,000 years. At the time of European settlement, it was inhabited by under 2000 hunter-gatherers from three indigenous tribes, the Wurundjeri, Boonwurrung and Wathaurong. The area was an important meeting place for the clans of the Kulin nation alliance and it would be 30 years before another settlement was attempted. Batman selected a site on the bank of the Yarra River. Batman then returned to Launceston in Tasmania, in early August 1835 a different group of settlers, including John Pascoe Fawkner, left Launceston on the ship Enterprize
36.
Crown Melbourne
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Crown Melbourne is a casino and resort located on the south bank of the Yarra River, in Melbourne, Australia. Crown Casino is a unit of Crown Limited, and the first casino of the now–international Crown brand, initially having opened in 1994 on the north bank of the Yarra, Crown Melbourne relocated and re–opened on the south bank of the Yarra, in 1997. It remains one of the features of the Southbank precinct of the Melbourne central business district. The entire complex has a space of 510,000 m² —the equivalent to 2 city blocks— making it the largest casino complex in the Southern Hemisphere and one of the largest in the world. The complex also hosts four hotels, Crown Towers, Crown Promenade, Crowns casino complex opened in 1997, after moving from a temporary location that opened in 1994 on the north bank of the Yarra. It is one of the features of the Southbank area in the central business district. Children under 18 are permitted into the entertainment and shopping section of complex, the entire complex has a space of 510,000 m², making it the largest casino complex in the Southern Hemisphere and one of the largest in the world. Crown Casino opened in 1994 at the World Trade Centre on the bank of the Yarra River. This location was a temporary, and training, setup while construction of the complex occurred. The Casino complex opened in its planned location at Southbank in 1997. Actress Rachel Griffiths infamously ran through the casino topless on its opening night and it is open 24 hours a day,7 days a week except on Christmas Day, Good Friday and Anzac Day when it is closed from 4 am to midday. It was founded, owned and run by Lloyd Williams until the Packer takeover by PBL in 1999, Crown Casino is the largest casino in the southern hemisphere and has a licence for 500 table games and 2,500 poker machines. There is also Bigwheel, the electronic Vegas Star Roulette and Rapid Baccarat, all lower denomination Blackjack tables only offer a proprietary variant of the game called BlackJack Plus, which has been described as the worst game of Blackjack in Australia. This variation enormously increases the house advantage from around 0. 5% in the higher denomination tables, to around 5%, as well as Three card poker on the main gaming floor, Crown has also offers varieties of poker including Texas Holdem. The Crown Poker Room encompasses a large space in the Crown basement. The Crown is also one of the centres for competitive poker in the Asia-Pacific region. It annually hosts the Aussie Millions, currently the Southern Hemispheres richest poker event, starting in 2013, it became home to the World Series of Poker Asia-Pacific, the latest expansion of the World Series of Poker. Crown Casino has 3,500 poker machines on the floor, with values ranging from one cent to one dollar
37.
Catty
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The catty or kati, symbol 斤, is a traditional Chinese unit of mass used across East and Southeast Asia, notably for weighing food and other groceries in some wet markets, street markets, and shops. Related units include the picul, equal to 100 catties, and the tael, a stone is a former unit used in Hong Kong equal to 120 catties and a gwan is 30 catties. Catty or kati is still used in South East Asia as a unit of measurement in some contexts especially by the significant Overseas Chinese populations of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore. The catty is traditionally equivalent to around 1⅓ pound avoirdupois, formalised as 604.78982 grams in Hong Kong,604.79 grams in Malaysia and 604.8 grams in Singapore, in some countries, the weight has been rounded to 600 grams. Chinese units of measurement Taiwanese units of measurement Japanese units of measurement Caddy Tea caddy
38.
Tai chi
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T‘ai-chi is an internal Chinese martial art 武术 practiced for both its defense training and its health benefits. As a result, a multitude of training forms exist, both traditional and modern, which correspond to those aims with differing emphasis, some training forms of t‘ai-chi ch‘üan are especially known for being practiced with relatively slow movements. Today, t‘ai-chi ch‘üan has spread worldwide, most modern styles of t‘ai-chi ch‘üan trace their development to at least one of the five traditional schools, Chen, Yang, Wu, Wu, and Sun. All of the former, in turn, trace their origins to Chen Village. T‘ai-chi ch‘üan theory and practice evolved in agreement with many Chinese philosophical principles, t‘ai-chi ch‘üan training involves five elements, taolu, neigong and qigong, tuishou and sanshou. While t‘ai-chi ch‘üan is typified by some for its slow movements, some traditional schools of t‘ai-chi teach partner exercises known as tuishou, and martial applications of the postures of different forms. In China, t‘ai-chi ch‘üan is categorized under the Wudang grouping of Chinese martial arts—that is, medical studies of t‘ai-chi support its effectiveness as an alternative exercise and a form of martial arts therapy. It is purported that focusing the mind solely on the movements of the form helps to bring about a state of mental calm, some other forms of martial arts require students to wear a uniform during practice. In general, t‘ai-chi ch‘üan schools do not require a uniform, the slow, repetitive work involved in the process of learning how that leverage is generated gently and measurably increases, opens the internal circulation. T‘ai-chi ch‘üans health training, therefore, concentrates on relieving the effects of stress on the body. For those focused on t‘ai-chi ch‘üans martial application, good physical fitness is an important step towards effective self-defense, Martial art, The ability to use t‘ai-chi ch‘üan as a form of self-defense in combat is the test of a students understanding of the art. T‘ai-chi ch‘üan is the study of change in response to outside forces. The use of t‘ai-chi ch‘üan as an art is quite challenging. Westerners often shorten this name to t‘ai chi and this shortened name is the same as that of the t‘ai-chi philosophy, sometimes causing confusion of the two. The chi in the name of the art may also be mistaken for ch‘i. The Wade-Giles form and its variations remain the most popular spelling today, however, most Chinese, including many professional practitioners, masters, and martial arts bodies, use the Pinyin. From a modern perspective, when tracing t‘ai-chi ch‘üans formative influences to Taoist and Buddhist monasteries. Nevertheless, some traditional schools claim that t‘ai-chi ch‘üan has a connection to
39.
Chongqing
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Chongqing, formerly transliterated as Chungking, is a major city in Southwest China and one of the Five national central cities in China. Administratively, it is one of Chinas four direct-controlled municipalities, the municipality was created on 14 March 1997, succeeding the sub-provincial city administration that was part of Sichuan Province. Chongqings population as of 2015 is just over 30 million with a population of 18.38 million. The official abbreviation of the city, Yu, was approved by the State Council on 18 April 1997 and this abbreviation is derived from the old name of a part of the Jialing River that runs through Chongqing and feeds into the Yangtze River. Chongqing was also a Sichuan province municipality during the Republic of China administration, Chongqing has a significant history and culture and serves as the economic centre of the upstream Yangtze basin. It is a manufacturing centre and transportation hub, a July 2012 report by the Economist Intelligence Unit described it as one of Chinas 13 emerging megacities. Tradition associates Chongqing with the State of Ba, the Ba people supposedly established Chongqing during the Spring and Autumn period after moving from their first capital Yicheng in Hubei under pressure from Chu. This new capital was first named Jiangzhou, in 316 BC, however, the state of Ba was conquered by the State of Qin. Jiangzhou subsequently remained under Qin Shi Huangs rule during the Qin Dynasty, the successor of the Qin State, and under the control of Han Dynasty emperors. Jiangzhou was subsequently renamed during the Southern and Northern Dynasties to Chu Prefecture, then in 581 AD to Yu Prefecture, the name Yu however survives to this day as an abbreviation for Chongqing, and the city centre where the old town stood is also called Yuzhong. It received its current name in 1189, after Prince Zhao Dun of the Southern Song Dynasty described his crowning as king, in his honour, Yu Prefecture was therefore renamed Chongqing subprefecture marking the occasion of his enthronement. In 1362, Ming Yuzhen, a peasant rebelling leader, established the Daxia Kingdom at Chongqing for a short time, in 1621, another short-lived kingdom of Daliang was established by She Chongming with Chongqing as its capital. The Manchus later conquered the province, and during the Qing Dynasty, immigration to Chongqing, in 1890, the British Consulate General was opened in Chongqing. The following year, the city became the first inland commerce port open to foreigners, the French, German, US and Japanese consulates were opened in Chongqing in 1896–1904. During the Second Sino-Japanese War, it was Generalissimo Chiang Kai-sheks provisional capital, the city was also visited by Lord Louis Mountbatten, the Supreme Commander of SEAC which was itself headquartered in Ceylon, modern day Sri Lanka. Chiang Kai Shek as Supreme Commander in China worked closely with Stilwell, the Japanese Air Force heavily bombed it. Due to its mountainous environment, many people were saved from the bombing, due to the bravery, contributions and sacrifices made by the local people during World War II, Chongqing became known as the City of Heroes. Many factories and universities were relocated from eastern China to Chongqing during the war, in late November 1949 the Nationalist KMT government fled the city
40.
National Day of the People's Republic of China
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The National Day of the Peoples Republic of China is a public holiday in the Peoples Republic of China to celebrate the national day, and is celebrated annually on October 1. The PRC was founded on September 21,1949, with a ceremony celebrating the forming of the Central Peoples Government taking place in Tiananmen Square on October 1 that year. The Central Peoples Government passed the Resolution on the National Day of the Peoples Republic of China on December 2,1949, the National Day marks the start of only one of the Golden Weeks in the PRC. However, there have some recent controversies over whether Golden Weeks should be kept. The National Day is celebrated throughout mainland China, Hong Kong, public places, such as Tiananmen Square in Beijing, are decorated in a festive theme. Portraits of revered leaders, such as Mao Zedong, are publicly displayed
41.
Luminous paint
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Luminous paint or luminescent paint is paint that exhibits luminescence. In other words, it gives off light through fluorescence, phosphorescence. Fluorescent paints offer a range of pigments and chroma which also glow when exposed to the long-wave ultraviolet frequencies. These UV frequencies are found in sunlight and some artificial lights, human eyes perceive these changes as the unusual glow of fluorescence. The fluorescent type of luminescence is different from the natural bio-luminescence of bacteria, insects and fish such as the case of the firefly. Bio-luminescence involves no reflection at all, but living generation of light, there are both visible and invisible fluorescent paints. The visible appear under white light to be any bright color, invisible fluorescent paints appear transparent or pale under daytime lighting, but will glow under UV light in a limited range of colors. Since these can seem to disappear, they can be used to create a variety of clever effects, both types of fluorescent painting benefit when used within a contrasting ambiance of clean, matte-black backgrounds and borders. Such a black out effect will minimize other awareness, so cultivating the peculiar luminescence of UV fluorescence, both types of paints have extensive application where artistic lighting effects are desired, particularly in black box entertainments and environments such as theaters, bars, shrines, etc. Out-of-doors, however, UV wavelengths are scattered in space or absorbed by complex natural surfaces. Furthermore, the complex pigments will degrade quickly in sunlight, phosphorescent paint is commonly called glow-in-the-dark paint. It is made from such as silver-activated zinc sulfide or doped strontium aluminate. The mechanism for producing light is similar to that of fluorescent paint, phosphorescent paints have a sustained glow which lasts for up to 12 hours after exposure to light, fading over time. This type of paint has been used to mark escape paths in aircraft and for use such as stars applied to walls. It is an alternative to radioluminescent paint, kenners Lightning Bug Glo-Juice was a popular non-toxic paint product in 1968, marketed at children, alongside other glow-in-the-dark toys and novelties. When applied as a paint or a more sophisticated coating, phosphorescence can be used for detection or degradation measurements known as phosphor thermometry. Radioluminescent paint contains a radioactive isotope combined with a radioluminescent substance, the isotopes selected are typically strong emitters of fast electrons, preferred since this radiation will not penetrate an enclosure. Radioluminescent paints will glow without exposure to light until the radioactive isotope has decayed and they are therefore sometimes referred to as self-luminous
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Black light
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A blacklight, also referred to as a UV-A light, Woods lamp, or simply ultraviolet light, is a lamp that emits long-wave ultraviolet light and not much visible light. Blacklight lamps which have this filter have a lighting industry designation that includes the letters BLB and this stands for blacklight blue, which is a contradiction in that they are the type that does not look blue. A second type of lamp produces ultraviolet but does not have the filter material and these tubes are made for use in bug zapper insect traps, and are identified by the industry designation BL. In medicine, forensics, and some scientific fields, such a light source is referred to as a Woods lamp. Strong sources of ultraviolet light are used in tanning beds. Fluorescent black light tubes are made in the same fashion as normal fluorescent tubes except that a phosphor that emits UVA light instead of visible white light is used. These tubes have a dim violet glow when operating and they should not be confused with blacklight or BL tubes, which have no filter coating, and have a brighter blue color. These are made for use in bug zapper insect traps, where visible light emission is not a problem, blacklight Blue lamps peak at 365 nm. Manufacturers use different numbering systems for black light tubes, philips uses one system which is becoming outdated, while the Osram system is becoming dominant outside North America. The following table lists the tubes generating blue, UVA and UVB, approximate phosphor compositions, major manufacturers type numbers and some uses are given as an overview of the types available. Peak position is approximated to the nearest 10 nm, width is the measure between points on the shoulders of the peak that represent 50% intensity. These two types seem to be the most commonly used, different manufacturers offer either one or the other and sometimes both. BLB fluorescent lamps tend to run with efficiencies in the 25% range, another class of UV fluorescent bulb is designed for use in bug zapper flying insect traps. Insects are attracted to the UV light, which they are able to see, and are then electrocuted by the device. These bulbs use the same UV-A emitting phosphor blend as the filtered blacklight, plain glass blocks out less of the visible mercury emission spectrum, making them appear light blue-violet to the naked eye. These lamps are referred to by the designation blacklight or BL in some North American lighting catalogs and these types are not suitable for applications which require the low visible light output of BLB tubes lamps. A black light may also be formed by simply using Woods glass as the envelope for an incandescent bulb. This was the method that was used to create the very first black light sources, due to its black body spectrum, an incandescent light radiates less than 0. 1% of its energy as UV light
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Nagasaki Kunchi
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Kunchi, also Nagasaki Kunchi or Nagasaki Okunchi, is the most famous festival in Nagasaki, Japan. It began as a celebration of harvests in the late 16th century. Another purpose was to check for hidden Christians after the ban on Christianity and this is still evident today in the custom of garden showing, when the presenting neighbourhoods open up their homes to public scrutiny. One of the most famous performances of the festival is the Dragon Dance which was performed on New Years Eve by the Chinese residents of Nagasaki. Rehearsals for the festival begin on June 1, karatsu Kunchi Nagasaki Dento Geino Shinko-kai Nagasaki Kunchi, Nagasaki Shimbun
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Nagasaki
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Nagasaki is the capital and the largest city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan. Part of Nagasaki was home to a major Imperial Japanese Navy base during the First Sino-Japanese War, during World War II, the American atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki made Nagasaki the second and, to date, last city in the world to experience a nuclear attack. As of 1 January 2009, the city has an population of 446,007. The total area is 406.35 km², a small fishing village set in a secluded harbor, Nagasaki had little historical significance until contact with Portuguese explorers in 1543. An early visitor was Fernão Mendes Pinto, who came on a Portuguese ship which landed nearby in Tanegashima and his followers who remained behind converted a number of daimyōs. The most notable among them was Ōmura Sumitada, the little harbor village quickly grew into a diverse port city, and Portuguese products imported through Nagasaki were assimilated into popular Japanese culture. The Portuguese also brought them many goods from China. Thus, for a period after 1580, the city of Nagasaki was a Jesuit colony, under their administrative. It was administered by the captain of the Portuguese black ship, the highest representative of the Portuguese Crown and it became a refuge for Christians escaping maltreatment in other regions of Japan. In 1587, however, Toyotomi Hideyoshis campaign to unify the country arrived in Kyūshū, however, the expulsion order went largely unenforced, and the fact remained that most of Nagasakis population remained openly practicing Catholic. In 1596, the Spanish ship San Felipe was wrecked off the coast of Shikoku, in response, Hideyoshi ordered the crucifixions of twenty-six Catholics in Nagasaki on February 5 of that year. Portuguese traders were not ostracized, however, and so the city continued to thrive, in 1602, Augustinian missionaries also arrived in Japan, and when Tokugawa Ieyasu took power in 1603, Catholicism was still tolerated. Many Catholic daimyōs had been allies at the Battle of Sekigahara. Once Osaka Castle had been taken and Toyotomi Hideyoshis offspring killed, though, in addition, the Dutch and English presence allowed trade without religious strings attached. Thus, in 1614, Catholicism was officially banned and all missionaries ordered to leave, most Catholic daimyo apostatized, and forced their subjects to do so, although a few would not renounce the religion and left the country for Macau, Luzon and Japantowns in Southeast Asia. A brutal campaign of persecution followed, with thousands of converts across Kyūshū and other parts of Japan killed, tortured, catholicisms last gasp as an open religion and the last major military action in Japan until the Meiji Restoration was the Shimabara Rebellion of 1637. Consequently, in Tokugawa society the word Shimabara solidified the connection between Christianity and disloyalty, constantly used again and again in Tokugawa propaganda, the Shimabara Rebellion also convinced many policy-makers that foreign influences were more trouble than they were worth, leading to the national isolation policy. The Great Fire of Nagasaki destroyed much of the city in 1663, including the Mazu shrine at the Kofukuji Temple patronized by the Chinese sailors, in 1720 the ban on Dutch books was lifted, causing hundreds of scholars to flood into Nagasaki to study European science and art
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Edo period
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The Edo period or Tokugawa period is the period between 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when Japanese society was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the countrys 300 regional daimyō. The period was characterized by growth, strict social order, isolationist foreign policies. The shogunate was established in Edo on March 24,1603. The period came to an end with the Meiji Restoration on May 3,1868, instrumental in the rise of the new bakufu was Tokugawa Ieyasu, the main beneficiary of the achievements of Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Already powerful, Ieyasu profited by his transfer to the rich Kantō area, after Hideyoshis death, Ieyasu moved quickly to seize control from the Toyotomi family. Ieyasus victory over the western daimyōs at the Battle of Sekigahara gave him control of all Japan. He rapidly abolished numerous enemy daimyō houses, reduced others, such as that of the Toyotomi, Ieyasu still failed to achieve complete control of the western daimyōs, but his assumption of the title of shogun helped consolidate the alliance system. After further strengthening his base, Ieyasu installed his son Hidetada as shogun. The Toyotomi were still a significant threat, and Ieyasu devoted the next decade to their eradication, in 1615, the Tokugawa army destroyed the Toyotomi stronghold at Osaka. The Tokugawa period brought 250 years of stability to Japan, the political system evolved into what historians call bakuhan, a combination of the terms bakufu and han to describe the government and society of the period. In the bakuhan, the shogun had national authority and the daimyōs had regional authority and this represented a new unity in the feudal structure, which featured an increasingly large bureaucracy to administer the mixture of centralized and decentralized authorities. The feudal hierarchy was completed by the classes of daimyō. Closest to the Tokugawa house were the shinpan, or related houses and they were twenty-three daimyōs on the borders of Tokugawa lands, all directly related to Ieyasu. The shinpan held mostly honorary titles and advisory posts in the bakufu, the second class of the hierarchy were the fudai, or house daimyōs, rewarded with lands close to the Tokugawa holdings for their faithful service. By the 18th century,145 fudai controlled such smaller han, members of the fudai class staffed most of the major bakufu offices. Ninety-seven han formed the group, the tozama, former opponents or new allies. The tozama were located mostly on the peripheries of the archipelago, because the tozama were least trusted of the daimyō, they were the most cautiously managed and generously treated, although they were excluded from central government positions. The Tokugawa not only consolidated their control over a reunified Japan, they also had unprecedented power over the emperor, the court, all daimyōs and the religious orders
