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Chinese culture

Chinese culture
Latest news and updates on Chinese culture including the country’s traditions, food, values, history and festivals.
Brushing one’s teeth is a basic part of oral hygiene today. Centuries ago, Chinese people used chewing sticks, among other methods, to keep their teeth clean. Photo: Shutterstock
Lessons from China's history

Reflections | How ancient Chinese dental practices were often similar to those used today

From gargling with medicinal concoctions to chewing sticks, people in China addressed dental health with considerable ingenuity.

Chinese zodiac predictions

Why the Year of the Horse will be a profitable but turbulent one for Horses

Chinese zodiac predictions

Year of the Horse 2026 predictions for all 12 zodiac signs. Is your luck in?

Food and Drinks

‘Umami, salty, stinky’: how 3 flavours define China’s Ningbo cuisine

We go on a culinary journey through Ningbo with the people behind Yong Fu Hong Kong to discover the region’s punchy and pungent flavours.

Ningbo-style marinated virgin crab is served at Zao Feng Lou in Cixi, Ningbo. The region’s unique cuisine, blending umami, salty and stinky flavours with innovative techniques, showcases its rich culinary heritage. Photo: Hei-kiu Au
Fashion

History of Chinese-style ‘frog buttons’, seen on viral Adidas jacket

Used in China for centuries, frog buttons are a key feature of a limited-edition Adidas jacket that has become a huge hit on social media.

Hong Kong culture

Editorial | Zhou Shen concerts a showcase of Hong Kong-mainland cultural ties

The Mandopop superstar’s concerts in Hong Kong attracted a large number of mainland visitors and his tribute to Cantonese culture won him new fans.

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Food and Drinks

5 premium sparkling teas in Hong Kong to try during Dry January

From The Peninsula’s Cuvée Sparkling Tea to Saicho’s limited-edition osmanthus offering, these low- or zero-alcohol tipples let you ditch the hangover but not the ceremony.

Saicho is just one of many labels offering non-alcoholic beverage options today. Photo: courtesy Saicho
Art

Hong Kong’s women tattoo artists who draw on Chinese culture to ink differently

These artists channel elements of Chinese painting, calligraphy and Buddhism through their needles in a new form of ‘poetic expression’.

Horoscopes

Horoscopes: what’s your luck like in January 2026, Earth Ox month?

It’s going to be smooth sailing for the Dragon, Horse and Dog, but those under the Ox sign need to be careful while on the road.

Year of the Horse 2026

3 Hong Kong events to celebrate the Year of the Horse 2026

From a horse show to a run in nature to a special character’s appearance at Hong Kong Disneyland, ring in the Lunar New Year at these events.

The Longines Hong Kong International Horse Show will return to the AsiaWorld-Expo from January 30 to February 1. The 2026 event will feature competitions and entertainment as well as the chance to see impressive equine action. Photo: Hong Kong Jockey Club
World of performing arts

‘I’d lie on the floor and cry’: Peking opera actress on the art’s challenges

Peking opera actress Zhang Wanting performs poses that can take months to perfect, and leave more than a few bruises.

Peking opera actress Zhang Wanting (left) performs a difficult balancing move during a show at the Jixiang Theatre in Beijing, China. Photo: AP
China's ageing population

For Shanghai’s elderly, dancing ‘makes us feel we still have value’

Shanghai’s elderly are flocking to the city’s dance halls for exercise, socialising and entertainment, with some venues open as early as 6am.

Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

Why Jet Li and Wong Jing’s The New Legend of Shaolin is underrated

The 1994 cult classic The New Legend of Shaolin blends comedy, action and child martial artists in a fresh take on the Shaolin myth.

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Fashion

When a Korean horsehair underskirt sparked a fashion frenzy in China

The maweiqun, an underskirt made from horsehair, was so popular in the Ming dynasty that the government banned it.

Ming Emperor Xianzong’s Tour of the Lantern Festival is a painting that depicts Emperor Chenghua in 1485 with eunuchs and palace maids portrayed wearing skirts that look like umbrellas spread out. South Korean researcher Koo Do-young proposes that they are wearing mamigun, the Korean originator to the Chinese maweiqun.
Lessons from China's history

Reflections | Chinese diners’ preference for warm water is not as ancient as you’d think

The ‘ancient Chinese wisdom’ about warm water being good for you is rooted in 20th-century health campaigns, not aeons of tradition.

Many Chinese people prefer to drink warm water over cold water. This is a legacy of 20th-century public health campaigns, not ancient wisdom. Photo: Shutterstock
US-China relations

US poet laureate Arthur Sze on slowing down to translate poetry across cultures

As the first Asian-American poet laureate, Sze reflects on Chinese cultural inheritance and poetry’s role beyond borders.

Food and Drinks

This former restaurateur releases debut book on Singaporean food culture

Little Perfections, by a Singaporean, US-based writer and cook, examines what Singaporean food is truly worth with essays and recipes.

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China consumption

China’s box office up 22% in 2025 to US$7.4 billion, led by smash hit Ne Zha 2

World’s second-largest movie market sees domestic films capture nearly 80 per cent of sales, while Disney’s Zootopia sequel sets new high for imported titles.

A display promoting the record-breaking animated hit Ne Zha 2 is seen in China’s Liaoning province on February 13. Photo: Xinhua
Science

Could 2,000-year-old machine from tomb in China be earliest binary computer?

Silk-weaving loom dating to Western Han is world’s oldest known ‘computer hardware’ with corresponding ‘software’, China science body says.

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China economy

Opinion | As history makes clear, a powerful China is not expansionist

China was an unmatched power in the Song and Ming dynasties, with greater concentrated authority. But it consolidated, rather than colonised.

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Asian diaspora

The Chinese cowboys challenging narratives of the American Old West

Whether through art or immersion in the rancher lifestyle, these Asian men are redefining what it means to be a cowboy in the American West.

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Self-professed Chinese cowboy Bruce Wang Shibo stands with a horse. The Chinese national is one of those rewriting narratives of the American West. Photo: Bruce Wang Shibo
US-China relations

‘No fixed identity’: new Chinese-American writers are telling their own stories

They’re not shaped by history like the previous generation, and observer says US-China tensions can give them ‘more space’ to explore issues.

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Illustration: Henry Wong
Chinese zodiac predictions

7 successful people born in the Year of the Horse, from Ang Lee to Lu Han

Horses are considered to be energetic, capable and driven to succeed. Here are 7 famous, successful Horses who epitomise those characteristics.

Horoscopes

What’s your luck like in 2026, the Fire Horse year? Horoscopes for every Chinese zodiac sign

What are your lucky numbers and months in 2026? Here’s how you fare in terms of wealth, career and relationship prospects.

Food and Drinks

Chinese chef of 2-Michelin-star restaurant is redefining plant-based cuisine

Chef Dai Jun talks about his philosophy at Beijing’s Lamdre, a restaurant that sits at the vanguard of the Chinese vegetarian food scene.

‘Sunflower’ by Lamdre. Photo: Wynn Resorts (Macau)
Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

How Stephen Chow and Donnie Yen reinvented Bruce Lee’s classic Chen Zhen

Fist of Fury 1991 with Stephen Chow and TV series Fist of Fury with Donnie Yen saw two different versions of Bruce Lee’s famous character.

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Donnie Yen in a still from the television drama series Fist of Fury (1995).
Jewellery

Luxury jewellery designers are embracing spirituality and mindfulness

Local brands fuse traditional Chinese motifs with a modern aesthetic, while Boucheron takes inspiration from Japanese art and philosophy.

Malaysia

How the Peranakan Chinese built one of Southeast Asia’s most powerful networks

Born of trade and migration, the Peranakan community has forged a distinct identity that has bridged China and Southeast Asia for centuries.

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