METRO SHANGHAI / METRO SHANGHAI
How much do foreigners know about this ancient Chinese festival for the dead?
Sweeping the tomb
Qingming Festival is a traditional Chinese festival and the most important ancestor worship event in China. Held every April 4 or 5, on that day many Chinese will visit their ancestors' tombs to honor their memory. But the ways to memorialize the dead vary from region to region, with BBC recently reporting that some funerals in rural areas of China involve strippers and loud pop music.
Honoring our ancestors
So how much do foreigners in Shanghai really know about Qingming Festival? Have they heard of it? What do they think of the different ways to celebrate the occasion? Are similar festivals held in their own countries? The Global Times recently stopped some foreigners on the sidewalks of Shanghai to ask them.
Almost all the foreigners we interviewed said that they know about this traditional festival. Ben Xiaoshan from France explained that the reason why he'd heard of this day was because he studied here and he didn't have any classes during the Qingming Festival. Ben from Britain added that he knows a few things about it. "People offer paper money and things like that."
This festival began during the Zhou Dynasty (1046BC-256BC) and has a history of 2,500 years. It is also one of the four traditional Chinese festivals including Dragon Boat Festival, Spring Festival and Mid-Autumn Festival.
The customs for Qingming Festival in ancient times included sports activities such as going for a walk, swinging and playing ball.
In addition, Qingming Festival is one of the three major ghost festivals in China during which people mourn for relatives who have died.
Nowadays, Chinese renovate their ancestors' tombs, burn paper money and offer food as a sacrifice.
But such customs vary from region to region, especially the date, the food and the methods. Moreover, there are many ways to memorialize the dead.
Strange customs
"I noticed that, in some countries like China, they have strippers to make funerals more lively and less dull," said Ben from the UK, "It is not something I am used to and it's a bit unusual." He added that, "It's not something which we have in our home country. We won't hire people like strippers for funerals."
Similar sentiments were echoed by other expats. Eva from Italy thought the custom was weird. "I don't see the connection between the relatives who have passed away and strippers," she said.
According to BBC, some Chinese people may hold the opinion that strippers dancing at a funeral is a mark of honor for the deceased and can be used to convey good wishes and blessings.
"I don't understand this," Alexey from the Ukraine said, "It's a little bit not so good for our country. Maybe this is a really good emotion."
Ben from France added that society is changing fast and some might enjoy strippers. But as far as he knows, Qingming Festival is very traditional, so this is too much for him.
Eva said, "To bring respect to relatives is a good thing. You have to remember them. I think it is a positive thing to do, like bringing offerings and praying for them."
British citizen Ben added that a funeral is something which one would expect to be more quiet, more peaceful and more calm.
Alex from Italy thought that burning paper is a part of the tradition but he also said, "Everyone can celebrate it the way he prefers.
"This behavior, like hiring strippers, is just to show that they have money to spend," he added. "It is a kind of luxury or vice."
Similar festivals
Every country has its own festival to remember the dead and some are similar with Chinese customs.
Alexey said Ukrainian people enjoy the festival on the last Sunday of April. A similar festival in France is on October 1. French Ben said, "Mostly we visit the cemetery and bring them flowers."
Alex from Italy said that November 2 is the day they celebrate dead people and stay with their family.
Eva from Italy told the Global Times that they have a similar festival for Catholic Christians in November. Though she is not religious, she knows it from her friends and parents. "On November 1, we remember all the dead people. They go to the church and a cemetery to pay them respect, bring flowers and remember them."
She added that, "In the past, in the south of Italy, people used to call women expert in crying very loud to bring more sadness in the funeral. It's weird too."
British people have a memorial day. "But it is not for individual families," Ben said. "It is more for soldiers and people who have been in the wars."
This article was written by Yao Jiaying.
A tomb sweeper places flowers on a grave at Fushouyuan cemetery in Qingpu district on Friday. Photo: Yang Hui/GT
Honoring our ancestors
So how much do foreigners in Shanghai really know about Qingming Festival? Have they heard of it? What do they think of the different ways to celebrate the occasion? Are similar festivals held in their own countries? The Global Times recently stopped some foreigners on the sidewalks of Shanghai to ask them.
Almost all the foreigners we interviewed said that they know about this traditional festival. Ben Xiaoshan from France explained that the reason why he'd heard of this day was because he studied here and he didn't have any classes during the Qingming Festival. Ben from Britain added that he knows a few things about it. "People offer paper money and things like that."
This festival began during the Zhou Dynasty (1046BC-256BC) and has a history of 2,500 years. It is also one of the four traditional Chinese festivals including Dragon Boat Festival, Spring Festival and Mid-Autumn Festival.
The customs for Qingming Festival in ancient times included sports activities such as going for a walk, swinging and playing ball.
In addition, Qingming Festival is one of the three major ghost festivals in China during which people mourn for relatives who have died.
Nowadays, Chinese renovate their ancestors' tombs, burn paper money and offer food as a sacrifice.
But such customs vary from region to region, especially the date, the food and the methods. Moreover, there are many ways to memorialize the dead.
Strange customs
"I noticed that, in some countries like China, they have strippers to make funerals more lively and less dull," said Ben from the UK, "It is not something I am used to and it's a bit unusual." He added that, "It's not something which we have in our home country. We won't hire people like strippers for funerals."
Similar sentiments were echoed by other expats. Eva from Italy thought the custom was weird. "I don't see the connection between the relatives who have passed away and strippers," she said.
According to BBC, some Chinese people may hold the opinion that strippers dancing at a funeral is a mark of honor for the deceased and can be used to convey good wishes and blessings.
"I don't understand this," Alexey from the Ukraine said, "It's a little bit not so good for our country. Maybe this is a really good emotion."
Ben from France added that society is changing fast and some might enjoy strippers. But as far as he knows, Qingming Festival is very traditional, so this is too much for him.
Eva said, "To bring respect to relatives is a good thing. You have to remember them. I think it is a positive thing to do, like bringing offerings and praying for them."
British citizen Ben added that a funeral is something which one would expect to be more quiet, more peaceful and more calm.
Alex from Italy thought that burning paper is a part of the tradition but he also said, "Everyone can celebrate it the way he prefers.
"This behavior, like hiring strippers, is just to show that they have money to spend," he added. "It is a kind of luxury or vice."
Similar festivals
Every country has its own festival to remember the dead and some are similar with Chinese customs.
Alexey said Ukrainian people enjoy the festival on the last Sunday of April. A similar festival in France is on October 1. French Ben said, "Mostly we visit the cemetery and bring them flowers."
Alex from Italy said that November 2 is the day they celebrate dead people and stay with their family.
Eva from Italy told the Global Times that they have a similar festival for Catholic Christians in November. Though she is not religious, she knows it from her friends and parents. "On November 1, we remember all the dead people. They go to the church and a cemetery to pay them respect, bring flowers and remember them."
She added that, "In the past, in the south of Italy, people used to call women expert in crying very loud to bring more sadness in the funeral. It's weird too."
British people have a memorial day. "But it is not for individual families," Ben said. "It is more for soldiers and people who have been in the wars."
This article was written by Yao Jiaying.
Relative cleans the tomb of an ancestor. Photos: VCG and Xiang Jun/GT
Alexey from Ukraine
Ben from the UK
Eva from Italy
Alex from Italy
Ben Xiaoshan from France
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