Language · 语言 Why Mandarin is called Putonghua
Mandarin is a Portuguese exonym that never came from Chinese; Putonghua was selected by name in 1955 and defined by the State Council in 1956.
Tag
habit-origins
- Language · 语言
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Culture · 文化 Why tomb-sweeping got a fixed date on the calen…
Tomb-sweeping is old; the public holiday is not. A 2007 revision added Qingming to China's paid holidays, and the first one fell on 4 April 2008.
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Buys · 好物 Why the thermos became a personal object
Hot water only became portable in the 1990s, once a stainless-steel vacuum flask could be made cheaply at home. Here is the object behind the habit.
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CityLife · 城市 Why cash stopped being the default in China
QR payment became the default in China between 2011 and 2013, then was halted by the central bank for two years before being formally recognized in 2016.
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Wellness · 养生 Why hot water is the default drink in China
Hot water became China's default drink in the twentieth century, not in antiquity. The dates that explain it are 1934, 1952 and 1985.