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Chinese history

Chinese history
The latest news, analysis and opinion on Chinese history. In-depth analysis, industry insights and expert opinion.
last updated:
9 September, 2024
People queue to buy lottery tickets at a branch of the Hong Kong Jockey Club in the city’s Central business district for the Mark Six Snowball draw of HK$100 million on January 2, 2025. Photo: Edmond So
Lessons from China's history

Reflections | The earliest Chinese lotteries, and a cheating operator’s gruesome death

Various forms of lottery have existed in China for centuries, as have attempts to ban them for reasons like the social problems they induce.

Chinese culture

What is that red Chinese candy box you see during Lunar New Year?

Horoscopes

Chinese horoscopes: what does January 2025 hold for your zodiac sign?

Food and Drinks

How 1,000-year-old lost art of Chinese tea ceremony is being revived

Latte art has got nothing on the ancient Chinese art of drawing on tea foam whipped up with a bamboo whisk, these days using matcha.

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Hot water is gently poured into the tea bowl before whisking begins. Photo: Kayla Chan
Science

Did a wet climate give rise to China’s first empires over 2,000 years ago?

Researchers find rainy, humid climate in ancient north China contributed to agricultural boom and prosperity of Qin and Han dynasties.

Lessons from China's history

Reflections | Witch doctor arrests in Zambia and a witchcraft lie that ended a dynasty

An alleged attempt to bewitch a president is a reminder of a plotter’s bogus claim about witchcraft being used against a Chinese emperor.

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Hong Kong culture

Beijing-Paris ties on display in Hong Kong show of silk, porcelain and diplomacy

Versailles and Forbidden City joint exhibition a sign of past exchanges and possible future strengthening of ties, experts say.

A vase with lion head handles on display at the Hong Kong Palace Museum. Photo: Sam Tsang
History

Should museums return antiquities to their countries of origin? Some say no

New fronts have opened up in the war of cultural restitution, raising complex ethical and legal questions as some argue against museums returning foreign artefacts.

Lessons from China's history

Reflections | Suicide in Korea is a big problem. In China, views were once very different

Events during one period in Chinese history indicate that for many, dying for honour was far more desirable than living a disgraced life.

Chinese culture

Opinion | China’s scientific breakthroughs can lead to linguistic ones too

While English is used in most global scientific exchanges, publishing more papers in Chinese could facilitate linguistic innovation and inclusion.

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The returner of the Chang’e-6 lunar probe is opened during a ceremony at the China Academy of Space Technology in Beijing, China, on June 26. Photo: Xinhua
Hong Kong society

New look at old Chinese, French ties in ‘grand finale’ Hong Kong exhibition

Exhibition offers new ways to discover the two cultures, says Laurent Salome, director of the National Museum of the Palaces of Versailles and Trianon.

Laurent Salome, director of the National Museum of the Palaces of Versailles and Trianon, at the Hong Kong Palace Museum. Photo: Sam Tsang
China-Japan relations

How AI is bringing conversations about wartime atrocities into the classroom

Project allows students to engage in dialogue with interactive testimonies, including from ‘comfort women’ and Nanking massacre survivors.

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Diplomacy

Editorial | Culture helps bolster China ties with France

Exhibition at Hong Kong Palace Museum serves as reminder of relationship with China and why it is important for city to ensure it continues.

Horoscopes

Chinese horoscopes: how’s your luck in December 2024, Fire Rat month?

If you’re a Rat like Dwayne Johnson or William Shakespeare, this is a great month both for parties and setting new goals – but what about the other 11 Chinese astrological signs?

The Chinese zodiac consists of 12 animals. Photo: SCMP Graphics
SCMP Highlights

Recap | Nanking massacre survivors tell of horrors suffered under Japanese occupation

Discover the harrowing tales of the 1937 Nanking massacre, as illustrator Chen Congying brings the experiences of survivors to life decades after the tragic event.

The Japanese troops murdered Chang Zhiqiang’s father and his three younger brothers. Photo: Xinhua/Illustration by Chen Congying
Chinese culture

Why the coming Year of the Wood Snake could be lucky

With 12 animals and 5 elements, the Year of the Wood Snake comes around every 60 years, and 2025’s may be more favourable than 1965’s.

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Lessons from China's history

Reflections | China has long kept a firm grip on news, with gossip harshly punished

The Yongzheng Emperor even put to death editors and writers linked to a report he had celebrated a festival that he had said he would not.

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Science

Ancient Chinese proved the Pythagorean theorem in 17 characters: mathematician

A leading academic has highlighted China’s rich mathematical history, including a startling fact about a well-known theorem.

Pythagorean theorem was proved hundreds of years before Euclid by an ancient Chinese mathematician. Photo: Shutterstock
SCMP Highlights

Recap | Ancient king’s tomb unearthed, a Song dynasty fashion shock and more historical finds

From ancient Chinese kings to cutting-edge AI in archaeology, explore fascinating discoveries that rewrite history in some of our recent stories looking into the past.

Chinese culture

Why is there a cake voucher with your Chinese wedding invite? We explain

A cake voucher often accompanies an invitation to a Chinese wedding, part of a practice that dates back centuries.

Art

Video art shows Chinese migrants’ struggle in 1800s New Zealand

Displayed at Tai Twun in Hong Kong, Lisa Reihana’s DigiRadiance: Gold_Lead_Wood_Coal shows Chinese miners in New Zealand in 360 degrees.

A visitor watches Lisa Reihana’s DigiRadiance: Gold_Lead_Wood_Coal. Photo: Edmond So
Science

Chinese women wore tank tops, transparent clothing 800 years ago: study

Digital reconstruction of treasure trove found in 800-year-old tomb reveals forward-thinking fashion of the day, according to scientists.

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Chinese scientists have created a digital reconstruction of a wealthy woman’s clothing from the Southern Song dynasty. Photo: Wuhan Textile University
Trending in China

Scholars debunk myth of Roman settlement in China with DNA tests, tourists undeterred

Roman culture intrigues China, inspiring TV dramas, novels about a legion’s journey to the East.

Chinese culture

Chinese horoscopes: how’s your luck in November 2024, Water Pig month?

If you are a Pig like billionaire Elon Musk or royal Queen Camilla, November is all about being humble – but what about the other 11 Chinese astrological signs?

Hong Kong culture

Palace of Versailles, Beijing Palace Museum loan relics for Hong Kong exhibition

Exhibition at Hong Kong Palace Museum to run from December 18 until May 4 of next year to celebrate 60 years of Sino-French diplomatic ties.

A chrysanthemum pot used at the court of China’s Qianlong emperor will be among the historical artefacts set to go on display in Hong Kong. Photo: Handout
Art

Artist Huang Yongyu showed his ‘relaxed’ side in new docu-film by Yonfan

Hong Kong director and photographer Yonfan is finally getting the recognition he deserves, with mainland censors deeming his Crossing Years docu about the late artist fit for the public.

Hong Kong Director and writer Yonfan, holds the award for Best Screenplay for the film No. 7 Cherry Lane at the closing ceremony of the Venice Film Festival in 2019. Photo: AP
Asia travel

We skipped Guilin’s karst hills and visited Longzhou in Guangxi, China instead

Guangxi’s little-visited Longzhou is a former French treaty port that offers all the karst peak sights and historic insight of far-more crowded locales.

Lessons from China's history

Reflections | How ‘dragon bones’ shed a whole new light on China’s ancient history

With the news that dinosaur fossils were found in Hong Kong, here is how China’s oracle bones changed our understanding of the Shang dynasty.

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