So far, I think almost all Germans I met know perfectly where China is, and where Hong Kong is. All say they've never been to both, but at least they know where they are. No one ever commented about my nationality.
Confusion between Chinese and Japanese
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A small trouble may be that, owing to my limited German, whenever my German is not enough to finish my request (like: where is the fabric softener/Weichspüler in the supermarket?), people want to switch to English, and I do feel that they judge me by my face. But I think this is also very natural. If I meet a Korean/Japanese and I have to talk, when I know nothing about their language at all, I, too, have to offer English anyway. Judging their face or not is irrelevant.
<<Asian ethnic groups look different from each other and most of us can tell apart from each other just by looking at appearance.>>
Yeah well, let's see you try this:
http://alllooksame.com/exam_room.php
Take the first test. Read the comments, even Asians themselves cannot identify the nationalities properly.
Yeah well, let's see you try this:
http://alllooksame.com/exam_room.php
Take the first test. Read the comments, even Asians themselves cannot identify the nationalities properly.
Who is stupid enough to believe they can tell a French from a German?
<<My French friend told me it's really hard to tell German from French or British from French unless she hears the language. (She said: sometimes there are obvious German looking people and obvious French looking people but in most times it is hard to tell each other!)>>
There are a lot of obvious German looking people who turn out to be French and vice versa.
<<My French friend told me it's really hard to tell German from French or British from French unless she hears the language. (She said: sometimes there are obvious German looking people and obvious French looking people but in most times it is hard to tell each other!)>>
There are a lot of obvious German looking people who turn out to be French and vice versa.
I'm Chinese by country of origin, It's funny that some Korean people would come up to me start speaking Korean...I also had other people recognized me as Chinese or Japanese or Korean before...I am not offended by it, cause it's very hard to tell us apart just by our looks.. I could only tell East Asians apart by the language they speak...I speak both Mandarin and Japanese(that's my 3rd language), also know a little Korean( I learned it part time for 4 months), that's about it...
So if we asians can't even tell each other apart easily, it's would be unfair to make other races do it, wouldn't it?
So if we asians can't even tell each other apart easily, it's would be unfair to make other races do it, wouldn't it?
Last time I met a girl in the same class for the first time... and I didn't know she was Vietnamese (very probably) until I saw her name. She just looks like a lot of girls in Hong Kong.
<<Yeah well, let's see you try this:
http://alllooksame.com/exam_room.php
Take the first test. Read the comments, even Asians themselves cannot identify the nationalities properly. >>
Now I'm convinced. I did the test and got only 5/18. I'm Chinese.
http://alllooksame.com/exam_room.php
Take the first test. Read the comments, even Asians themselves cannot identify the nationalities properly. >>
Now I'm convinced. I did the test and got only 5/18. I'm Chinese.
i did the test too
8/18, at least i'm better than the average
i used to think that i can tell people from those two three countries
8/18, at least i'm better than the average
i used to think that i can tell people from those two three countries
Lasdf's original post is quite valid in its listing of differences between China and Japan. For example, when it comes to government, it's not possible to find such a big contrast in Europe unless you venture all the way east to Belarus and Russia.
However, and I'm saying this as a Chinese... there's no doubt that Chinese, Japanese and Korean culture have a lot in common with each other. Both Chinese and Japanese culture are traditionally built upon a substratum of Confucianism and Buddhism, though each country has embellished it with its own unique characteristics (Shinto in Japan, Taoism in China - and, more recently in the PRC, *cough* extreme Communism followed by extreme consumerism *cough*).
Personally, I prefer to accentuate the similarities between China, Japan and Korea rather than emphasising the differences. There's been far too much animosity, bickering and nationalism in this region. We ought to take pride in a common "East Asian" cultural heritage.
I do find it ridiculous when people assume that Hong Kong is in Japan, simply because it's a mark of ignorance. However, I'm not offended when people ask if I'm Japanese or Korean. And if they were to talk to me in Japanese or Korean, I'd be more than pleased to use it as an opportunity to practise those two languages (which I'm actively learning). I'm proud to be Chinese, but above all, I'm proud to be East Asian.
P.S. "The traditional clothing and music is very different" ...
That depends on how "traditional" the clothing you have in mind is. The traditional clothing of the Han Chinese people is the Hanfu (look it up on Wikipedia), which is far more similar to the Japanese kimono than the qipao and tangzhuang subsequently imposed on China by the Manchu invaders. After almost 300 years of Manchu rule during the Qing dynasty (1644-1912), the qipao and tangzhuang are now associated with the Chinese people, but they were originally not Chinese clothing.
However, and I'm saying this as a Chinese... there's no doubt that Chinese, Japanese and Korean culture have a lot in common with each other. Both Chinese and Japanese culture are traditionally built upon a substratum of Confucianism and Buddhism, though each country has embellished it with its own unique characteristics (Shinto in Japan, Taoism in China - and, more recently in the PRC, *cough* extreme Communism followed by extreme consumerism *cough*).
Personally, I prefer to accentuate the similarities between China, Japan and Korea rather than emphasising the differences. There's been far too much animosity, bickering and nationalism in this region. We ought to take pride in a common "East Asian" cultural heritage.
I do find it ridiculous when people assume that Hong Kong is in Japan, simply because it's a mark of ignorance. However, I'm not offended when people ask if I'm Japanese or Korean. And if they were to talk to me in Japanese or Korean, I'd be more than pleased to use it as an opportunity to practise those two languages (which I'm actively learning). I'm proud to be Chinese, but above all, I'm proud to be East Asian.
P.S. "The traditional clothing and music is very different" ...
That depends on how "traditional" the clothing you have in mind is. The traditional clothing of the Han Chinese people is the Hanfu (look it up on Wikipedia), which is far more similar to the Japanese kimono than the qipao and tangzhuang subsequently imposed on China by the Manchu invaders. After almost 300 years of Manchu rule during the Qing dynasty (1644-1912), the qipao and tangzhuang are now associated with the Chinese people, but they were originally not Chinese clothing.
Thanks for your input. I actually thought you were someone like Sir Damian, both of you guys being in the same city!
>>Lasdf's original post is quite valid in its listing of differences between China and Japan. For example, when it comes to government, it's not possible to find such a big contrast in Europe unless you venture all the way east to Belarus and Russia.
Indeed, the same goes for China and Japan, despite their obviously different political systems.
>>I do find it ridiculous when people assume that Hong Kong is in Japan, simply because it's a mark of ignorance.
I must say I'm happy that people are never mistaken when I say I'm from "Hong Kong, China". And the more people I know, maybe, some other people also know that "ah, so this guy is a Chinese... hm... though I'm not sure where he comes from". At least they don't greet me in Japanese/Korean.
>>After almost 300 years of Manchu rule during the Qing dynasty (1644-1912), the qipao and tangzhuang are now associated with the Chinese people, but they were originally not Chinese clothing.
But just as how you may say English is still Germanic despite its import of French-Latinate vocab, the adoption of Manchu (esp. female) costume also means the past Manchu rule "merged" its own culture into the Chinese. It goes just like that. I learned a lot of history, and I know that, in many cartoons published in western countries before around the 1910s, Chinese people (and predominantly guys) had always been portrayed with the Manchu-style queues, whether they are commoners or officials.
And now, no matter how people discuss about restoring the Hanfu, well, commoners, I mean peasants of our country, I think they look just as plain as any kind of peasants in our history. To restore the Hanfu sounds more like asking more affluent people to try it on... and restore it like we're to wear it all the time like many Arab men, for example.
>>Lasdf's original post is quite valid in its listing of differences between China and Japan. For example, when it comes to government, it's not possible to find such a big contrast in Europe unless you venture all the way east to Belarus and Russia.
Indeed, the same goes for China and Japan, despite their obviously different political systems.
>>I do find it ridiculous when people assume that Hong Kong is in Japan, simply because it's a mark of ignorance.
I must say I'm happy that people are never mistaken when I say I'm from "Hong Kong, China". And the more people I know, maybe, some other people also know that "ah, so this guy is a Chinese... hm... though I'm not sure where he comes from". At least they don't greet me in Japanese/Korean.
>>After almost 300 years of Manchu rule during the Qing dynasty (1644-1912), the qipao and tangzhuang are now associated with the Chinese people, but they were originally not Chinese clothing.
But just as how you may say English is still Germanic despite its import of French-Latinate vocab, the adoption of Manchu (esp. female) costume also means the past Manchu rule "merged" its own culture into the Chinese. It goes just like that. I learned a lot of history, and I know that, in many cartoons published in western countries before around the 1910s, Chinese people (and predominantly guys) had always been portrayed with the Manchu-style queues, whether they are commoners or officials.
And now, no matter how people discuss about restoring the Hanfu, well, commoners, I mean peasants of our country, I think they look just as plain as any kind of peasants in our history. To restore the Hanfu sounds more like asking more affluent people to try it on... and restore it like we're to wear it all the time like many Arab men, for example.
>>Thanks for your input. I actually thought you were someone like Sir Damian, both of you guys being in the same city!
Haha, Damian's way of styling himself inspired me to do the same. Maybe I should also include my postcode (EH8) from time to time =p
>>At least they don't greet me in Japanese/Korean.
I've been greeted by Japanese/Korean people in their own languages. I usually play along with them when that happens, to the extent of my very limited abilities.
>>To restore the Hanfu sounds more like asking more affluent people to try it on... and restore it like we're to wear it all the time like many Arab men, for example.
All I'm saying is that Hanfu, the most "traditional" of all Chinese costumes, has an obvious (if only partial) resemblance to the hanbok and kimono. Hence, anyone who claims that "traditional Chinese and Japanese clothing are COMPLETELY different" is neglecting a very important part of the Chinese sartorial tradition.
Of course it's true that queues and qipao/tangzhuang form part of the foreigner's image of the stereotypical Chinese person. I'm not going to challenge the validity of that image or argue for the "restoration" of hanfu.
However, the hanfu should not be *eclipsed* by the Manchu image. Both costumes deserve equal recognition as symbols of the Chinese people, and both underscore a commonality between Chinese culture and those of our neighbours (Manchurians and Mongolians; Japanese and Koreans).
Haha, Damian's way of styling himself inspired me to do the same. Maybe I should also include my postcode (EH8) from time to time =p
>>At least they don't greet me in Japanese/Korean.
I've been greeted by Japanese/Korean people in their own languages. I usually play along with them when that happens, to the extent of my very limited abilities.
>>To restore the Hanfu sounds more like asking more affluent people to try it on... and restore it like we're to wear it all the time like many Arab men, for example.
All I'm saying is that Hanfu, the most "traditional" of all Chinese costumes, has an obvious (if only partial) resemblance to the hanbok and kimono. Hence, anyone who claims that "traditional Chinese and Japanese clothing are COMPLETELY different" is neglecting a very important part of the Chinese sartorial tradition.
Of course it's true that queues and qipao/tangzhuang form part of the foreigner's image of the stereotypical Chinese person. I'm not going to challenge the validity of that image or argue for the "restoration" of hanfu.
However, the hanfu should not be *eclipsed* by the Manchu image. Both costumes deserve equal recognition as symbols of the Chinese people, and both underscore a commonality between Chinese culture and those of our neighbours (Manchurians and Mongolians; Japanese and Koreans).
chinks went over to korea and japan and became koreans and japanese. so asians are basically the same
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