THE CHINESE TEA CULTURE
Osman Dndar
THE CHINESE TEA CULTUREKARA
INTERNATIONAL BACCALAUREATEEXTENDED ESSAYTHE CHINESE TEA
CULTURE
GRADUATION THESIS
ENGLISH A2Supervisor:Dirayet Ulu Name:Osman Dndar
Surname:Kara No:1704 Word Count:5234 Session:2010-2011
ABSTRACTa.SubjectThe subject of this thesis is the chinese tea
culture and you will read a thesis about the culture of tea in
China and related topics about this subject.b.Introduction'China is
one of the world's oldest civilizations and the oldest continuous
civilization.It has archaeological evidence dating back over 5,000
years.China was the largest and most advanced civilization for much
of recorded history and is viewed as the source of many major
inventions.' 1Also China has a great unique culture which has lots
of myths , legends in it and truely these are the things that make
this culture , 'root of the many other cultures'. China has lots of
imagination in its culture and in its roots , think of a country
that was build over breath-taking beliefs , epic stories , heroic
characters . Added to that , one of the most important property of
the Chinese culture is its unlimited beliefs and epics about the
nature .It is impossible to talk about the relationship between
China and the nature without talking about tea , which is the
greatest factor affecting the culture of the China . China has lots
of destiny just about the tea subject . It is surely impossible to
talk about all of these but one of them- the most important one
also - made this tea-mania to spread all over the world :1
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China'According to legend, Shen Nung,
an early emperor was a skilled ruler, creative scientist and patron
of the arts. His far-sighted edicts required, among other things,
that all drinking water be boiled as a hygienic precaution. One
summer day while visiting a distant region of his realm, he and the
court stopped to rest. In accordance with his ruling, the servants
began to boil water for the court to drink. Dried leaves from the
near by bush fell into the boiling water, and a brown liquid was
infused into the water. As a scientist, the Emperor was interested
in the new liquid, drank some, and found it very refreshing. And
so, according to legend, tea was created.' 2Besides these stories ,
different from the other countries , tea has a unique importance in
China , for example tea has its own customs , sayings , categories
, preparations , even presentations . If we think of this drink
more clearly , it is not so confusing . Lots of people have a
thought that , tea is the cure of all of the diseases . If we
consider the tea-addictive countries like China,Turkey(Black
Sea),England ..etc - they are the most nature related countries
also - , we can easily say that the happiest , strongest , longest
lived people are always from these countries .c. Regarding
IssuesWhile this thesis was being produced ; books , internet ,
inviduals , encyclopedias , ... etc. had been used . While
preparing this thesis , the main subject is examined carefully
without originating or copying from a different thesis or resource
.
Word Count : 5082
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_tea_in_ChinaPREFACEa.Aim
My aim , while writing this thesis , was to examine the chinese
tea culture carefully from all its aspects and to obtain bullet
points for this subject which will help me to get an outcome that
would both be an answer of my topic-related concerns and a solid
evidence of my thoughts and predictions .b.Opinions/ThoughtsIt was
a difficult thing to write this thesis and do all of that
researches and use them in the right place . I was very excited
when I started writing this thesis but by the time passes , I get
used to this thesis thing and have been faster and more comfortable
. The hardest thing was preparing the first five or six pages then
it was easier . In spite of these diffuculties , it was a very
exciting and funny thing to write a thesis . It is great to create
something like this on your own without needing anyone else.Word
Count : 163CONTENTCOVER
ABSTRACT
PREFACE
BODY
a.What is tea? Origin of tea Physical properties of tea
6-7b.How is it produced? Different tea species
7-8c.What are the benefits of tee?
8-9d.Tea addictive countries
10-11e.Tea drinking customs
11-13f.Tea drinking equipments tools
14-15g.Place of women in the tea culture
15-17h.Tea legends , tales
17-19i.Tea idioms and sayings
18-22j.The most famous places to consume tea in China
22-23
Conclusion
24
BIBLIOGRAPHY
THE CHINESE TEA CULTURE
Surname,Name,No :KARA , Osman Dndar , 11-D
Advisor :Gamze Unay
Session : 2010-2011
Word Count:4269a.What is tea? History of tea Physical properties
of tea
To start with , we need to know this plant . Tea is an aromatic
drink prepared from the dried leaves which are picked up from wide
tea fields with care . This world-wide famous drink first found in
China and then spread all over the world . This drink , because of
its unique fresh , aromatic taste and uncountable benefits , have
been famous in 18th century in nearly all countries and in every
country it has been started to serve differently . So in every
country like Turkey , England , France ... etc. there has been a
unique tea culture created because of this it is impossible to talk
about all of this cultures unique tea culture so i concentrated my
subject just to the root of the tea culture China .
In China tea is found by a brutal emperor Shen Nung five
thousand years ago but the exact date is unknown . In China this
drink become traditional in 13th century and tea culture has been
created . In 21th century tea has become the most widely consumed
drink after water.
Tea is processed in warm climates like Turkey and loves acidic
soil . Tea plants in order to be processed have to be longer than
120 cm. Traditional Chinese Tea Cultivation and Studies believes
that high quality tea is cultivated at elevations like 1.500 metres
. At these heights tea grows more slowly and its fresh unique taste
gets a better flavour . Added to that in most countries only the
top 4 or 5 centimeters of the mature plant are picked and this part
of the plant is called flushes . Picked part of the plant grow into
a new flush in a one or two week during the growing season . A tea
plant can grow into a tree if left undisturbed.
b. How is it produced? Different tea species
Every country has its own production process but in China this
process a bit different.In China most famous teas are ; Dragon Well
, Spring Snail , Iron Goddess , Fur Peak , Silver Needle , Big Red
Robe , Mellon Seed , White Fur , Pu'er , Oolong , Cloud & Fog ,
Fur Tip , Sweet Dew Ming Ding , Jasmine , Jade Dew , Pearl Tea ,
Monkey King . But all of these teas are made of six different tea
species . But despite this fact , they have big cliffs between them
in means of taste , smell , color , serving , freshness ,
...etc.
These are the six different teas that produce that much variety
and their mostly common production methods and properties;
*White tea: Wilted and unoxidized
*Yellow tea: Unwilted and unoxidized, but allowed to yellow
*Green tea: Unwilted and unoxidized
*Oolong: Wilted, bruised, and partially oxidized
*Black tea: Wilted, sometimes crushed, and fully oxidized
*Pu -erh tea: Wilted, ripened, cooked and (un)oxidized 3c. What
are the benefits of tee?
In general , benefits of tea are ; being an antioxidan ;
avoiding alzheimer , teeth and mouth diseases , refreshenes the
liver avoid chloresterol , helps balancing the mineral balance ,
avoid asthma , helps the immune system and kidneys ...etc. And
these are the mostly common benefits of the most famous teas in
China :
*Green tea Yellow tea ; avoid heart attacks and cancer , avoid
obesity , diabetes and cardiovascular diseases.*White tea ; reduces
the risks of developing rheumatoid arthritis , avoid some cancers ,
reduces the risk to have a heart disease and 3
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tea slow the enzymatic break down of
elastin and collagen which accompany aging so we can say that its
the formula of being forever young good news for women - .
*Black tea ; acts as an antioxidan , reduces the risk of obesity
, coronary artery disease , cholesterol .*Oolong tea ; antioxidan ,
burns over 157% more fat than Green Tea - and therefore becoming
the most popular teas designed to accelerate weigh loss , o
promotes strong, healthy teeth; improves cognitive functioning and
mental well-being;preventing eczema, allergies; clarifies your
skin, giving it a healthy, radiant glow and strengthens your immune
system.*Pu - erh tea ; reduce blood cholesterol have antimutagenic
and antimicrobial properties invigorate the spleen and inhibit
"dampness." In the stomach, it is believed to reduce heat.
d. Tea addictive countries
Apart from the China ; India , Turkey ande England are the first
three countries in which tea is produced and drunk most .Lets start
with India.The world's largest producer of tea, India is a country
where tea is popular generally as a breakfast and an evening drink.
It is often prepared with milk and sugar. Almost all the tea
consumed is black Indian tea. Usually tea leaves are boiled in
water while making tea , and milk is added after.Also offering tea
rather than alcoholic drinks to visitors is a tradition in
India.Apart from that ; there are three most famous regions in
Indian to produce black teas- Darjeeling, Assam and Nilgiri and
teas produced in these regions known with the name of the regions
.
Turkish tea is produced on the whole Black Sea region , because
this region has a mild climate with high precipitation and fertile
soil . Turkish tea is usually prepared by using two stacked kettles
especially designed for tea preparation . Water is brought to boil
in the larger lower kettle and then some of the water is used to
fill the smaller kettle on top and steep several spoons of loose
tea leaves, producing a very strong tea. When served, the remaining
water is used to dilute the tea on an individual basis, giving each
consumer the choice between strong or weak . 4 . In Turkey drinking
tea from small glasses is a very popular tradition , by doing this
Turkish people enjoy tea hot and see its colour . In Turkey , tea
is the major drink such that it is the symbol of Turkish people and
generally replaces the alcohol and coffee .Turkey has the highest
per capita consumption in the world at 2.5kg (in 2004) , followed
by the UK (2.1kg) and Ireland (1.5kg) .
4 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tea_culture#TurkeyAnd lastly
UK...The British are the second largest per capita tea consumers in
the world, with each person consuming on average 2.1kg per year.
The popularity of tea in this country goes back to the 19th century
when India was part of the British Empire , and in that time ,
partly , British was controlling the tea industry in India .
However , tea is first known in Britain in the 1660s and 1670s. As
tea-mania spread throughout the United Kingdom , British people
started to have tea customs like ; tea gardens and tea dances.
These customs widened to dinner parties and dances, concluding with
nice evening teas . The tea gardens lost its value after World War
II but traditional tea dances are still popular today in the United
Kingdom.The British concept of a 'tea break' during working hours
is a term used originally in the working environment, indeed tea is
actually not consumed that much when compared to Turkey . e.Tea
drinking customs
There are six popular tea drinking customs in China ; as a sign
of respect , for a family gathering , to apologize , to express
thanks to your elders on ones wedding day , to connect large
families on wedding days and to pass on the tradition . In customs
like that people generally believe to hold a napkin in hand to keep
away bad chi . Also its believed that tea is the one of the seven
daily necessities , the others are firewood , rice , vinegar , oil
, salt and soy sauce . In Chinese society , young ones always show
their respect to the elders by offering a cup of tea. In the past ,
people of lower rank had been serving tea to higher ranking people.
Nowadays , as Chinese society becomes more liberal, sometimes at
home parents may pour a cup of tea for their children , but the
lower ranking person doesnt expect tea serving from a higher
ranking person .When children leave home to work or get married ,
they generally visit their parents very rare . As a result ,
parents dont see their grandchildren that often . Because of that
going to restaurants and drinking tea , is an major activity in
family meetings . Especially every Sunday , Chinese restaurants
gets crowded and this phenomenon reflects Chinese family values.In
Chinese culture , people apology by offering tea for another person
. As an example , in China , children serve tea to their parents to
show a sign of regret and submission.
In the traditional Chinese marriage ceremonies , both the bride
and groom kneel in front of their parents and serve them tea. That
is a way to express their gratitude. In front of their parents, it
is a practice for the married couple to say, "Thank you for
bringing us up. Now we are getting married. We owe it all to you."
The parents will usually drink a small portion of the tea and then
give them a red envelope, which symbolizes good luck. 5Another
example is ; grooms and their familys offering of tea to the brides
family to show that hence the bride is also a member of grooms
.
In China , in marriages , two crowded families come together and
in such occasions generally there can be family members who couldnt
be introduced even once to the other family . So, during the tea
ceremony, the couple serve tea to all family members and call them
by their official title . Drinking the tea symbolizes acceptance
into the family. Refusing to drink served tea , symbolizes
opposition to the wedding and it is quite unheard . When older
relations are introduced different from the others , would give a
red envelope to the married couple while the couple would be
expected to give a red envelope to younger , unmarried relations .
We can say that its a little bit similar with the turkish weddings
- giving the wedding flowers to the younger , unmarried ones
Kungfu cha is a special drunk in Chaoshan . For example , in
Chaoshan , families get together in a room to drink Kungfu cha and
chat . During such occasions , young ones watch the elder ones
carefully and by this way , tradition and culture pass on to the
younger generation .
5 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_tea_culturef.Tea drinking
equipments - tools
Different equipment and tools may be used in Chinese tea
service.The essential tea service equipment includes a tea pot for
brewing loose tea leaves, a tool for removing the tea leaves, and a
cup for drinking the prepared tea. 6 Firstly , Yixing teapots are
very popular for serving tea in China .When preparing tea with
these teapots ; over time , this type of clay teapots absorb the
flavors and essence of the teas that are brewed inside it .This
seasoning effect protects the taste of the tea and flavors it .In
China , cast iron teapots can be used for serving tea and also will
have a seasoned coating after prolonged use .Moreover , porcelain
teapots can be used for serving tea too .Preparing tea in each of
these teapots is very similar and flavors of these teas mainly
split up by the type of tea brewed .
The tea leaves should be removed from the teapot before serving
tea to prevent others from drinking theleavesand because most teas
should not be steeped longer than their recommended steep time to
avoid tasting bitter .A hand-held strainer can be used to catchtea
leaves as tea is poured from the teapot .And nearly all of the
teapots contain a built-in strainer for easy removal of the tea
leaves. 66 http://www.teavana.com/tea-info/serving-teaApart from
the traditional tools , serving tea in a tea cup or mug is one of
the best ways to enjoy freshly made tea .Glass tea cups can create
a georgeous tea service by allowing others to watch the beautiful
color of the tea .It is especially a very popular and traditional
method to drink tea .Aristically designed ceramic teacups and
porcelain tea mugs are also options for serving tea and express an
unique style.
g.Place of women in the tea culture
Statistics show that 90% of teahouse owners , are women . Among
China's tens of thousands of tea merchants , 95% are women , as are
the CEOs of more than 50% of Chinese tea companies . Tea leaf
pickers are also mainly women, by virtue of their slim, deft
fingers that pluck without bruising millions of tons of tea leaves
. Chinese tea , a product that embodies oriental womanly know-how
and industry, is enjoyed all over the globe, and acts as an
ambassador of peace , good health and moderation. 7As the famous
poet Su Dongpo once said : The best of tea has a beauty all its
own, and the tea trade is one nurtured and maintained by women.7
http://www.womenofchina.cn/Lifestyle/Customs/213529.jsp
We can say that in China , tea is 90% in hands of women . So
without referring to Chinese women , we cant fully understand the
tea culture of China . We can process this subject in two major
titles by looking at the place of women in tea serving . First one
is ; the role of women in wedding tea ceremonies and the second one
is the place of women in daily social and financial life ; in tea
gardens .
First of all , lets look at the wedding tea ceremonies . In some
families, the bride serves the tea to her parents in the morning
before she is married . And the order of tea service is same with
the Turkish tea order -first to grooms sides elders- . The tea set
in the bride's dowry is used for the ceremony . The groom's sister
or a relative also plays a role in preparing the tea and washing
the cups . The bride is usually at the right of the groom . The
male elder being served faces the bride and the female elder faces
the groom. The bride and groom may bow to the elders and greet them
by their formal title in the family while serving them tea . The
bride's parents will pay for the tea set which is part of the
dowry. The chinese wedding tea set is a meaningful keepsake of the
wedding. The bride will use it again when her own daughter gets
married in the future. 8 And this shows the strong bond between the
Chinese woman in the Chinese culture .
Also in the wedding ceremonies , bride also eat some special
fruits with tea . And this symbolizes the importance and the
dominant role of women in marriage . Bride generally eats lotus and
red dates seeds and longan to have healthy children . By looking
these we can say that ; women have a important role in the tea
culture and also we can say that all of these ceremonies and
customs are very similar to Turkish tea culture and wedding
ceremonies .8
http://www.chinese-wedding-guide.com/tea-ceremony.html
Now lets look at the role of woman in the social life in terms
of tea serving . One of the tourist groups that have been in
Shanghai explain that ; the building that the tea ceremony is held
was an unremarkable building and has small back rooms only for tea
serving. The woman performing the tea ceremony had prepared six
different types of teas for them . Before serving two miniature
servings of each, she had explained the ingredients and benefits of
each flavor .
In Chinese tea ceremonies drinking the tea in three sips means
good luck . Moreover in China generally some fruits are served with
tea too, such as flavored pumpkin seeds and delicious plums but of
course all of these servings and preparations are in control of the
women and finding men workers in tea houses are not very common .If
we think about the kitchen - love of women it is not really weird
in fact . Also in Turkey , Black Sea , only women picks the teas
leaves and only women serve tea in social life . Maybe because of
the similarity between the Turkish and Chinese culture , i dont
think dominance of women over tea is weird . As in a famous Turkish
saying ; A wife can either make his husband a king or nothing
.h.Tea legends , talesThere are some very famous stories about the
tea in China . There are three most popular tea stories that are
told from generation to generation ; legend of Shen Nung ,
Bodhidarma and tea monkeys .First legend is like this ; The story
goes that Bodhidharma had taken a vow to spend nine years staring
at a wall in constant meditation. Five years into his meditation he
experienced extreme tiredness.One day he fell asleep during
meditation. Angry on his failure he cut off his eyelids and threw
them to the ground. The story goes on that whereBodhidharma's
eyelids landed, the first tea plant grew. 9And the second legend is
; Legend has it that Shen Nung was boiling his drinking water (a
common practice in China, even today) one day when a light breeze
blew the dried leaves of a nearby shrub blew into his cauldron.
When the liquid turned brown, the emperors curiosity was piqued. Of
course, he couldnt resist the urge to taste the interesting liquid.
He claimed it was rather refreshing and urged others to try it. As
it turned out, the mysterious leaf happened to come from what we
now know as a tea bush. The rest, as they say, is history. 9And the
last legend is ; It was autumn time, the monkeys were eating dried
flower buds and leaves. The taoist monk, amused, picked the same
buds and leaves the monkeys had chosen. He was surprised to find
that the flowers were sill fragrant and the leaves were sticky with
natural oils. The monk went back inside to where his water was
boiling. He put his handful of flowers and leaves in a small bowl,
then pours hot water over them. The fragrance released from the
flower buds filled the air.9
http://www.tea-time.com/home.asp?menuitems=teainfo&pageId=87
The leaves changed the clear water to a deep amber liquor. The
monk was so enticed by the steaming liquid that he sipped slowly
his first cup of tea. 10To sum up , if we look at these legends we
see that , there are great similarities between them and this
proves that the origin of these legends are same and the differents
between them are the products of the imaginations of the story -
tellers .i.Tea idioms and sayingsThere are great numbers of idioms
and sayings just about tea because of that we are going to look at
the most popular and original ones . Lets take a look at the most
popular idioms and their meanings first ; *More saliva than tea ;
talking too much.
For example : You talk too much , i think you have more saliva
than tea .
*Have tea some other time ; see you later .
10 http://firehorseportfolio.com/tea/teamonkey.htmlFor ex : Oh ,
i have an emergency call sorry , lets have tea some other time
.
*Cool tea and hot beer ; it means a bad rating for a
restaurant.
For ex : This restaurant is disgusting like cool tea and hot
beer .
*Tea in place of liquor ; when you do this with alcohol , you
raise your hand and show your respect to someone - in Turkish to
your honor- and when you do it with tea , you do the same thing but
say I use tea in place of liquor .For ex : I greet you my lord ,
tea in place of liquor !
*Unrefined tea and unflavored rice ; having a very simple life
.
For ex ; You always stay at home and watch TV , your life is
like unrefined tea and unflavored rice
*Not for all the tea in China ; refusing something in a very
clear and tough way .For ex ; I cant kill my wife , not for all the
tea in China.*Ones cup of tea ; someones greatest desire or dream
.
For ex : Being a maths teacher , was always my cup of tea .
If we translate these idioms to Turkish we see that it is
similar in Turkey . This is really a great proof to the relation
between the China and Turkey both in terms of history and culture .
And lets look at the most original sayings ;
*Love and scandal are the best sweeteners of tea. ~Henry
Fielding*Tea is drunk to forget the din of the world. ~T'ien
Yiheng*Each cup of tea represents an imaginary voyage. ~Catherine
Douzel*Drinking a daily cup of tea will surely starve the
apothecary. ~Chinese Proverb*If you are cold, tea will warm you. If
you are too heated, it will cool you. If you are depressed, it will
cheer you. If you are excited, it will calm you. ~Gladstone,
1865*Tea should be taken in solitude. ~C.S. Lewis*If man has no tea
in him, he is incapable of understanding truth and beauty.
~Japanese Proverb*Tea is liquid wisdom. ~Anonymous
These examples can be multiplied of course but neither i need to
show them all nor we need to see them all . Its enough to see the
most popular and exciting ones only .
j.The most famous places to consume tea in China
China is the center of the tea industry so there are tones of
tea houses in China but there are just a few restaurants in Beijing
that blows your mind with the flavor of their tea and their
extraordinary service and decoration . These famous restaurants are
; Laoshe Tea House , Peace Art Co. and City Impression Tea House
.Laoshe Tea House has become popular in 1988 for offering
"Dawancha" or "big-bowl tea", a tradition that has been running for
more than 2 decades. 11 The best thing about this tea house is that
the prices are still same as the first day . Today , you can still
get a refreshing bowl of tea for only two Chinese cents .
Peace Art Co. ; 50 years ago it was a popular salon favored by
literatis and artists . An artistic aura still surrounds the
building today, though it's now a teahouse. Whether it's the
traditional paintings or the decorated screens, Chinese culture is
close enough to be touched and felt everywhere.11 At the first
floor there is a mini-museum which have paintings , calligraphy and
old furniture in it . And the second floor is where you can drink
tea and enjoy delicious foods with a couple of friends. Want to
have a taste of Beijingers' life in the old days? At City
Impression, you can enjoy the mood, the peace and even the goldfish
in the porcelain crock . Besides an extensive list of teas, City
Impression also offers various traditional food and snacks either
from the royal palace or from local families.11 At City Impression
, there can be also old Beijing games played . These old games ,
years ago , were everwhere where children have fun but nowadays
they are very rare to be found . 11
http://kaleidoscope.cultural-china.com/en/131Kaleidoscope7272.htmlConclusion
To sum up , we have seen that Chinese tea has a very deep and a
strong culture both in China and other major countries in the world
. The biggest factor of this world wide fame is surely the unique
freshness and numerous benefits of the tea .
In an brutal age like this , tea is an important factor that
connecting people emotionaly and relaxing them in a spiritual way .
It is said that ; Tea is liquid wisdom , people that have the
spirit of tea in themselves are beginning to believe to this saying
more than ever . Who could know that a few leaves and a cup of
water will have that much effect on humanity ? We have still too
many things to learn from the nature . There are still lots of
miracles which have been waiting to be seen in nature .
Added to these , in this thesis we have learned the major role
of women in the tea world . We have learned the similarities
between the countries like China and Turkey-who have the same
origin-which had been created and developed with the help of the
nature . Shortly , in real , by investigating the tea subject ; we
have been a part of the people who have been lovers of the mother
nature .
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