Introduction to the customs of the world

1. Thailand: People follow the customs of the countryside, it is necessary to know some of the local customs in Thailand:

1. Thai people are accustomed to the "Hap Sang Salute" (that is, bowing with palms together to each other to salute each other), Hap Sang is often exchanged greetings "Shavadeeka" (the Thai word for "good day"). When others greet you with a bow, you should also bow back, otherwise it is rude. Once you have done so, there is no need to shake hands or say goodbye, but monks do not have to return the salute to lay people. The handshake when meeting or saying goodbye has not yet been popularized in Thai society.

2. Myanmar It is acceptable for men to wear "skirts". Burmese men wear caged clothes. It is acceptable to eat with your hands. Get used to the idea of ladies appearing around you with powdered faces. The Burmese grind a plant into a powder and apply it to their faces to protect them from the sun.

Get used to the Burmese people talking to you with their mouths open. The Burmese love to eat betel nut wrapped in leaves, so many of the locals have teeth that are stained red.

3. India There are many taboos in India, which vary from religion to religion and region to region.

With universal taboos are: sleep, can not head north, feet south, it is said that the king of Yama lives in the south; night taboo said snake; festival alive and joyful days taboo pancakes; babies avoid looking in the mirror, otherwise it will become mute; the father is alive, the son taboo wrapped since the turban, shaved head; 3 and 13 is a number of taboos, because the god of shiva has three eyes, the third eye is destructive, 13 because people die after There are 13 days of mourning; women during pregnancy, it is taboo to make clothes and take photographs; it is taboo to pass things with the left hand.

Floral wyverns displayed in the market are forbidden to be sniffed or touched with the hands, and the above behavior will be detested by the people.

Whistling is taboo in India, especially for women. In restaurants, stores and other service industries, the grams if whistling to greet the waiter is regarded as offensive to the personality of others as a first courtesy behavior.

The head is the most sacred part of the Indian body, so travelers should not directly touch their heads. Never pat an Indian child on the head, which is believed to hurt the child.

Don't praise a child even in a friend's house; many Indians believe that such praise attracts the attention of evil people.

Indians are forbidden to wear leather goods (belts, straps, shoes, clothes), especially at holy places, because Hindus do not kill cows, Muslims do not brake pigs, and Jains are not required to kill people and animals or insects.

To enter a temple or mosque in India, one removes shoes and crosses the threshold rather than stepping over it. To enter a temple barefoot, one has to wash one's feet at the entrance beforehand as a sign of courtesy.

Anyone entering a Muslim temple is not allowed to wear shorts or sleeveless undershirts, and is also required to remove their shoes.

Anyone who enters a Sikh temple must first put on a turban or hat and then take off his shoes before entering

4. Vietnam Traditional Festivals and Folklore: Vietnam's traditional national festivals are the same as those in China, including the Spring Festival, Ching Ming Festival, Dragon Boat Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival, and Chung Yeung Festival, with Spring Festival being the biggest festival. Vietnamese people are simple and civilized. When they meet, they used to greet each other, nod their heads, shake hands, or embrace each other according to French etiquette, and they are often called brothers and sisters. Vietnam is y influenced by Han culture, and most people believe in Buddhism. Buddhism was introduced to Vietnam at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, and after the 10th century, Buddhism was honored as the state religion. At present, there are about 20 million Buddhists in the country. In addition, Catholicism has been introduced to Vietnam for more than 400 years and currently has more than 3 million followers, mostly in the south. Vietnamese people worship their ancestors and are generally superstitious about the city god and the god of wealth. In general, people's homes are equipped with offering tables and incense burners, and they worship at home on New Year's holidays. Clothing is simple, with men wearing suits on formal occasions and women wearing ethnic-style "long shirts" (similar to the cheongsam) and pants. Their food habits are similar to those of some ethnic groups in Guangdong, Guangxi and Yunnan. They eat with chopsticks and prefer light, cold, sour and spicy food. Vietnamese people avoid taking pictures of three people together, and cannot use a match or lighter to light cigarettes for three people in a row, which is considered unlucky. They don't want people to touch the top of their heads, and they can't put their feet up against people when they sit on the ground.

Names and AddressesThe big surnames of the Kinh, the main ethnic group in Vietnam, are Nguyen, Tran, Ngoc and Le. Like the Chinese, the Vietnamese have surnames in front and first names at the end, mostly single-surname two-character names, and a few have single-surname one-character names as well. Vietnamese people in the address, in addition to the first person more commonly used neutral "I" (pronounced as "heap"), the second person "you" and the third person " He (she) do not have neutral personal pronouns, and are usually addressed according to the other person's generation or status to show affection or respect. For example, to the father's generation, the second person directly with "uncle", "aunt", "uncle", "aunt", etc.; third person with "that person", "that person", "that person", "that person", "that person", "that person", "that person", "that person", "that person", "that person". In the third person, "that uncle", "that aunt", etc. are used. Vietnamese greetings do not distinguish between "morning and evening" and "hello". In addition to "goodbye", they usually use the word "call" to express their greetings. For example, when we meet, we say "call comrade" is "comrade hello", and when we part, we say "call comrade" is "comrade goodbye". ". When Vietnamese people address each other, usually the name and the last name in a row, rarely with the surname and even the first name are called, that is considered impolite. Such as a man named Nguyen Hinh Cuong, according to his age and degree of affinity, called "Cuong Bo", "Cuong Uncle", "Cuong Brother", "Cuong Dai "or "Mr. Qiang" or "Comrade Qiang".

ClothingIn ancient times, the Kinh people of Vietnam wore a variety of overdresses and long skirts. By the Middle Ages, commoners wore brown cloth and officials wore blue khaki. After the 15th century, the rich usually wore brocades and red robes for ceremonies and banquets, officials wore brown or black cloth, bureaucrats wore green clothes, and commoners wore blush-colored coarse cloth. After the French entered Vietnam, the clothing of the common people began to change considerably, with women wearing knotted tops and pants. In modern times, men in Vietnamese cities tend to wear suits and women wear flowery narrow oiled robes. Vietnamese women's robes can be said to be the national costume of Vietnamese women, the upper body girdle, highlighting the body, so that the woman looks ah Na Duozi, hem stretch, open right to the waist, easy to move. Special attention is paid to Vietnamese women wearing robes, but also wear a black or white wide-legged pants. Vietnamese women like to wear necklaces, hand thresholds, rings, more than a long shawl hair, or with hairpins tied behind the head. The beauty of Yangnuo and teeth Vietnamese Kinh, Dai, Thai, and Edi people have a special hobby of chewing Ham Ham. They often press the coconut rubbed on a little lime paste or alkali hair fire mouth chewing, so that mold hammer chemical reaction, the juice is not swallowed, down the corners of the mouth out, chewing to no juice when the slag spit out. Chewing by the nut is usually first bitter and then sweet, can stimulate the nerves, refreshing the brain, in addition to the accumulation of swelling. The Kyoto people also use the betel nut as a token of honor, giving a betel nut as a gift for marriage proposals and invitations to guests. Chewing mold nut and dyeing teeth is an ancient custom of the Jing people. In the past, men and women began to dye their teeth as soon as they reached the age of 17 or 18. According to their custom, starting to chew the betel nut and dye their teeth symbolizes that they have reached adulthood and are ready to get married. From then on, these young men and women were free to participate in any local recreational gatherings, sing songs and choose their partners. With the development of time, this ancient custom has declined, but in the Vietnamese countryside, you can still see a lot of older women with their teeth stained black and shiny. In their eyes, keeping teeth as white as jade is a sign of bad quality and style, while staining them black and bright is the most beautiful. Festivals Vietnam also uses both solar and lunar calendars. In addition to national holidays such as New Year's Day, International Labor Day, National Day, etc., Vietnam also celebrates the Ching Ming Festival, Dragon Boat Festival, Chinese New Year Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival, Chung Yeung Festival, and Spring Festival. Like the Chinese, the Lunar New Year is the biggest festival of the year. In Vietnam, there is a folk song "Fat meat, ginger, onion, red couplets, flags, firecrackers and rice dumplings". It means that when the Lunar New Year comes, we have to prepare rich meat and vegetables for the festival, cook rice dumplings, put big red couplets on the door, high streamers fluttering in the wind, and firecrackers sounding. From this folk song, it is clear that Vietnamese people attach great importance to the Lunar New Year. When the New Year meets the old year, Vietnamese people also have the habit of observing the New Year's Eve. On New Year's Eve, people usually have to sleep on songs for the entertainment of the native soldiers, which later spread to the people. The so-called military drum is actually a wooden drum or foreign iron drum, two pillars in the village head, with hemp or steel wire rope will be fixed on the pillar after the drum taut, with a stick to beat the rope so that it makes a chirping sound, men and women stand on one side of each side, knocking the side of the song, laughter and joyful songs together, the atmosphere is joyful and warm. Some young men and women have built up their feelings and established romantic relationships through the songs. Ancestor worship Vietnamese people, like other Oriental people, also pay attention to filial piety. In every family, it is an indispensable sense for children to honor their grandparents and parents. The Vietnamese people worship their dead ancestors very much and thus attach great importance to the belief in ancestor worship, which has been inherited from generation to generation and formed into a large scale. People believe that although the loved ones died, but his soul still exists, the descendants also play a protective and supervisory role, dominate all the activities of the people, many disasters on earth, we have to rely on the first spirit of blessing and relief. Vietnamese people do not have shrines, shrines, shrines, shrines in every house, is an altar to honor the ancestors, is a sacred place to honor the ancestors of God, no one can not offend, nor can there be any defilement. In the city, due to the narrowness of the dwellings, the altars were made in small and varied ways. For example, a board was nailed to the wall or the roof of a cupboard was used as an altar for the ancestors. In the center of the altar was an incense burner, flanked by two joss sticks. In front of the incense burner is a wooden or plastic tray with a thin waist and red lacquer. Fruit is served on glass plates, in addition to a pair of vases and a number of cups and saucers for the altar. In some families, there are couplets on both sides of the altar, such as "the ancestor's merit and virtue of a thousand years, filial son and grandson of ten thousand generations of prosperity", "blessed with rituals and ceremonies of the family hall is flourishing, the lucky hair of the glory of the spring of the blessing" and so on.

Vietnamese people regard offering sacrifices to their ancestors as a major event to show their gratitude for their nurturing. Many families, despite their different religious beliefs, do not neglect making offerings to their ancestors. Before the Lunar New Year, the altar must be redecorated with incense and candles and offerings. During the three days of Lunar New Year, the altar is always covered with incense, and parents and clansmen pray before the family reunion dinner. Vietnamese people's worship of ancestors is also manifested in the taboo on names. Normally, children and grandchildren are not allowed to mention the names of their ancestors and fathers, and if some nouns in real life overlap with the names of their ancestors and fathers, they have to avoid them or replace them with synonyms. When a child is small, parents do not let him or her know the name of the ancestor in case the child shouts nonsense and disrespects the ancestor. If someone points to the name of the ancestors taunted or abusive, taunted or abusive person will think it is subjected to a strange shame, will stir up deep hatred is very big. In recent years, the taboo on names has become rare in cities, but in rural areas, the custom is still maintained. In addition to worshipping ancestors, ancient Vietnamese people were generally superstitious about City God, divination, astrology, feng shui and elves. All natural objects and natural phenomena, such as rivers, lakes, mountains, trees, wild animals, wind and rain, etc., in their minds, there are elves in them, which should be worshiped to get rid of disasters and bring good fortune. For example, in Kim Lien village, Dung Tuo district, Hanoi, there is still a tablet inscribed with the name of the God of Kao San Da Wang, which was erected in 1510. In rural areas, offerings are usually made to the gods of land, banyan trees, snakes, and tigers, as well as to the center stone of the village. Centerboard, etc. People worship the tiger in places where it frequents, and they must not offend it by speaking or acting in a way that offends it, calling it "Da Wang of the Mountain" in a low voice. If you meet a tiger, not only can you not kill it, but also offer all kinds of sacrifices. Ancient Vietnamese people generally worship the evergreen, leafy trees, they believe that these long-term storms, thunder and lightning attack of the tree can survive, there must be a god under the tree, so often people in the shade, especially in the banyan tree under the incense or in the open space next to the tree to build temples, feng shui masters and fortune-tellers often gather here.

Religion Since the Western Han Dynasty in China in 111 B.C., Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism have been introduced to Vietnam from China and have had a great influence on the ideology of the Vietnamese people. The Buddhism imported from China is Mahayana Buddhism, which is called "Northern Buddhism" by the Vietnamese. In addition, there are some Vietnamese who believe in Hinayana Buddhism, which is called the "Southern Sect" and was introduced from Thailand and Cambodia. Among the Vietnamese, Buddhism accounts for the largest proportion of believers, with most of them believing in Mahayana Buddhism, and there are many temples all over the country. Buddhists avoid killing and emphasize karma. On major festivals and personal birthdays, they usually go to Buddhist temples to pay homage to the Buddha, offer gifts and listen to monks chanting sutras.

Catholicism has been introduced to Vietnam for about 500 years. In the early centuries, Western missionaries began to come to Vietnam, but were officially banned. The earliest missionaries to Vietnam were two French missionaries, Audreco Badeno and Francis Xavier. During the French period, Catholicism gained legal status in Vietnam and grew rapidly. By 1966, there were 11 dioceses in the north and south of Vietnam, with 3 million Catholic believers. Christianity also had many believers in Vietnam, mainly in Hanoi, Hai Phong, Ha Tay, Cheng Tien, Quang Nam's present port, Po Lai Cu, Binh Thuan and other places. Christianity is a new denomination split from Catholicism, which has only been in Vietnam for nearly a hundred years, and is known as "Evangelization" in Vietnam. 1893, the Christian pastor David Lorahan came to Saigon to preach, and then some pastors came to Vietnam to preach, but they were banned by the French colonial authorities. Christianity did not gain a foothold in Vietnam until 1920.

Most ethnic Kinh farmers in Tay Ninh and Duc Thi in southern Vietnam practiced Cao Dai, a religion known as "Dao Dao San Phu Duc Cao Dai," which was founded by Ngo Van Chieu and Le Van Trung in 1926. The religion combines Buddhism, Catholicism, Christianity, Taoism, and Confucianism, and believes in Confucius (Humanism), Jiang Taigong (Divine Principle), Jesus (Sacred Principle), Laozi (Immortal Principle), and Shimou (Buddhist Principle). Followers of the Gauteng religion can make offerings to their ancestors, but they cannot make offerings of grass, cannot use paper horses, must refrain from killing, greed, meat, sex and foul language, and must burn incense and recite sutras at 6, 12, 18 and 24 o'clock every day.

In An Giang, Dong Thap Mai, Hoa Cien and Dong Chuan in southern Vietnam, many people have joined the Hoa Hao religion. The religion, a variation of Buddhism, was founded in 1939 by a Vietnamese man, Hoang Phu Truc, who named his village "Hoa Hao Village" after the village where he lived, which means filial piety and goodwill. Like Buddhism, this religion also teaches compassion. Like Buddhism, this religion also talks about compassion, fraternity, commonwealth and karma, and most of its followers are peasants, so it is also known as "Peasant Buddhism". The Harmony religion has monks, but no temple, with a red cloth instead of images of God and Buddha, believers in the morning and evening offerings to Buddha twice, offerings for flowers and water, flowers represent chastity, water represents purity.

In just a few months of living in Vietnam, I was fortunate enough to see Vietnam's Ho Chi Minh City celebrating Southern Liberation Day. My Vietnamese friends say that April 30 is the most memorable day for the people of southern Vietnam because on that day, April 30, 1975, the south of Vietnam was liberated.

As the liberation day approached, cities in the south, especially Ho Chi Minh City, presented a bustling scene.

Brightly colored national flags were hung up in the streets and alleys, and red flags fluttered as they walked along the streets; all units made all kinds of preparations; and all households were joyful.......People were easily infected by this atmosphere.

The most exciting part of the event was a large-scale ethnic garden held in Reunification Square in the center of Ho Chi Minh City, in which you can see a variety of customs and traditions of Vietnam, a microcosm of the country.

Vietnamese human chess is the most special, the eye-catching thing is the huge chess board, but the most curious thing is that there are people standing on the board, wearing costumes with symbols, and they are the "chess players". The "commander-in-chief" outside the arena directs the "pawns" in their attack routes, and their moves are similar to those of Chinese chess. When the "pawns" face each other head-on, both sides do their best to fight against each other, and the weaker side is eliminated from the game. The whole game feels "alive".

Swinging is also a traditional program in Vietnam, which, according to Vietnamese friends, is a must at every temple fair.

The swing is very big, the frame is very high, and the rope pulling the swing is covered with a long bamboo pole, so the rope will not bend when swinging up, and the arc is also large. Generally, two people can stand on the swing, and someone underneath pulls with the rope. One can imagine - a young Vietnamese girl in flowing traditional costume standing on it, like a butterfly fluttering in the air as the swing is swung up high.

"Boom boom ......" a firework flew up, followed by a burst of lively sound of gongs and drums, squeezed forward to see, it turned out to be a water puppet show. Vietnam Water Puppet Theater is a wonderful thing in the garden of the world's puppet theater. "Water" is the artistic life of water puppetry, and the artists of water puppetry play it to the fullest extent. In a burst of firecrackers, gongs and drums, conch horns, dragons, fish, turtles jump out of the water in a race to be the first, these divine animal characters are shaped in accordance with the traditional art of painting in Vietnamese folklore, painted with raw lacquer and gold powder and various colors, looking simple and lovely. In the traditional program of water puppetry, people can see the golden turtles spraying water and fairies dancing to the "divine song" in a fantasy-like performance.

On the stage set up, traditional Vietnamese operas, such as the modified opera, are performed. The performers, dressed in traditional costumes, sing old tunes and dance rhythmically. That performance is very old and distinctive, popular with locals, and everywhere you go, the rhythmic tune rings in your ears.

In the Ethnic Garden, there are also exhibitions of many varieties of food, such as spring rolls, rice noodles, rolled noodles and other tasty snacks with Vietnamese characteristics. Visiting there not only filled our eyes but also our mouths. More importantly, it allowed us to feel the various customs of Vietnam.

2. Thailand usually call a person's name, in the name before adding a "kun" word, both men and women can be used, expressed as "Mr.", "Mrs.", "Miss" meaning.

3. Thai people taboo with the foot pointing or pointing to people, even when sitting, are not allowed to point their toes at others, this move is considered impolite practice. Touching each other's head or waving your hand over the top of someone's head is considered insulting and is a prohibited action.

4. Thai people believe that the right hand is noble, while the left hand can only be used to hold some unclean things, therefore, when handing things to others should use the right hand, as a sign of respect. In more formal occasions, but also two-handed, with the left hand will be considered contempt for others. If a woman wishes to give something to a monk, it is appropriate to ask a man to pass it on. If the hand to give, the monk will open a piece of yellow robe or handkerchief, to accept the woman handed over the things, because the monk is not allowed to touch the female.

5. Respect for religion. Temples are recognized as sacred places by the Thai people, so anyone who enters a temple must dress modestly and neatly, and may not wear shorts, mini-skirts, bare-breasted or other inappropriate clothing. Inside the temple, shoes may be worn, but they must be removed when entering the temple and care must be taken not to step on the threshold. Every statue of Buddha, no matter how big or small or whether it is damaged or not, is sacred, and one must never climb on a statue of Buddha to take pictures or make disrespectful gestures towards it.

6. Respect the royal family. Everywhere in Thailand you can see the king and the royal family portraits, such as coins, banknotes, calendar cards, wall charts, etc., which shows the respect for the royal family. Tourists should be careful to show proper etiquette, for example, when there is a royal family present at a public **** occasion, it is best to pay attention to the actions of others and follow suit.

7. Don't behave indecently in public **** places, for example, you should avoid kissing, hugging or shaking hands with Thai people in public **** places. Except for some beaches where nude sunbathing is permitted, in other places, Thais do not like such behavior, which is against the Buddhist philosophy of the Thai people, even though it is not against the law.

Diet

Thailanders eat rice as their staple food, like spicy and sour food, and are accustomed to drinking iced tea due to the constant heat. Thai cuisine is usually made from fresh ingredients, and the flavor of the food is mainly spicy and seasoned with a wide variety of spices, such as chili, curry, rainbow, shrimp paste, coconut milk and so on. Most Thai food consists of light vegetarian food, including fish, vegetables and rice, with some spices and sauces. However, no matter whether the rice meal is rich or not, there must be meal soup, which is similar to the style of Cantonese cuisine in China.

5.1, Scottish men wearing lattice skirt

Men wearing skirts are not rare in the world, Scottish men are one of the examples. Wearing a small black tweed cap, a lattice skirt and socks, and holding a bagpipe in his hand, this is the proud dress of Scottish men. Scottish people love to wear lattice skirt, because different patterns of lattice cloth represents different clans, each clan for their own design of a representative of the spirit of the clan and blood relations of the lattice skirt. When a clan member wears their clan's gingham, they also wear their clan's pride, responsibility and loyalty.

2. Folk etiquette

The British give people the impression that they are conservative and have a sense of humor. The British tend to accept familiar things and are always skeptical of new or foreign things. The British are modest, and boastfulness is a sign of lack of education. The British value a person's sense of humor. The starting point of British humor is self-depreciation, with conceit as the enemy, and its ultimate goal is to be able to laugh at oneself, at one's own shortcomings, failures, dilemmas and even one's own ideals. They do not believe in flamboyance or self-aggrandizement. The British love sport, and modern forms of sport are almost exclusively British inventions, such as boxing, rugby, field hockey and tennis.