Sign in Using FacebookBeijing Guide » More About Beijing: Interesting Facts
Interesting Facts
- Beijing or Peking? Many visitors wonder why this city appears to have two names. The simple answer is that it's simply a matter of pronunciation. Southern Chinese called the city "Peking." The official name was amended in 1928 for political reasons to 'Beiping,' but Chairman Mao intervened once and for all in 1949 and changed the name of the city back to reflect its northern pronunciation: 'Beijing.'
- Beijingers are traditionally of Han Chinese origin. However, the population of the city has grown considerably in the last 20 years and many ethnic minorities, such as Zhuang, Hui, Uygur, Tibetan and Mongolian – mainly economic migrants – have moved to the capital from western China. Add to that all the tourists, embassy staffs, university students and multinational companies now based in Beijing, and you'll find that it's very much a cosmopolitan city these days.
- Rock 'n Roll may be here to stay, but it is still possible to find authentic Peking opera performances in Beijing. Suggestive body movements tell the historical tales in harmony with the music, mime or clashing gongs. Shortened versions of this colorful art often appeal to most tourists and can be seen at the Liyuan Theatre. If you want to check out a full performance, head over to the Huguang Guild Hall where traditional Peking opera has been staged regularly since 1807.
- Tai chi, or 'tai chi chuan,' is a graceful, non-combat martial art practiced in China to promote health and longevity. Based on Taoist principles, tai chi should help you find balance and calm through its slow movements and deep breaths. Every morning at dawn you can find dozens of Beijingers – mostly elderly people – performing meditative rhythmic movements in any park in the city. It's highly unlikely anyone will object if you want to join in. The Temple of Heaven Park is a popular and beautiful setting for morning sessions.
- China has been producing the finest silks in the world for at least 5000 years. Known for their luster and smooth texture, silks are often intricately embroidered. Also be on the lookout for Chinese ceramics, from the delicate blue and white porcelains, such as Ming vases, to the unglazed purple and red clay Yixing teapots. Jade and other stone (as well as disapproved ivory) carvings are also created with exquisite detail.
- Peking Duck, or Peking Roast Duck, is a famous, delicious dish that has been around since the days of the Yuan Dynasty of the 12th and 13th centuries. Ducks for this dish are specially bred for 65 days, then seasoned and roasted in an oven. Authentic Peking Duck should be served as thin slices of tender meat in a crispy skin. The meat is tucked into thin pancakes along with spring onions and hoisin (plum) sauce. 'Hao-chi!' (Delicious!)
- The Great Wall of China is the longest and largest manmade structure in the world. Built to keep out the Mongol hordes invading from the north, construction on the wall began in the 5th century BC and continued periodically over the next 2000 years. In its prime, the Great Wall of China reached 6400 km (4000 miles) in length with an average of 6.5 m in width.
- Mao Tse Tung, or 'Mao Zedong' in Pinyin, is indisputably the most famous Chinese person in modern history. Born in 1893 in Hunan province, Mao led the Communist Party of China to power in 1949. Chairman Mao introduced controversial economic reforms such as 'The Great Leap Forward' and the 'Cultural Revolution,' which led to millions dying in purges and from starvation. Mao died in 1976, but is still revered in Beijing, his portrait looking over Tiananmen Square where he lies preserved in a tomb. Such was Mao's cult of personality, that a book of his quotations – The Little Red Book – vies with the Bible as the world's most read book.
- 'The Four Great Inventions of Ancient China' are paper, the compass, gunpowder and printing. But the Chinese also introduced many other inventions to the world, including the pendulum, crossbows, kites, the seismometer, paper money, parachutes, the postal system, scissors, windmills and steel. That's not to mention Chinese discoveries in medicine and astronomy. A recent historical book, '1421,' also contends that the Chinese discovered the Americas.
- The 1987 movie 'The Last Emperor' tells the tragic story of Pu Yi, who ascended to the Chinese throne in 1908 at the age of two years and 10 months. Although raised as a demigod in the Forbidden City, Pu Yi was deposed in 1911 when China became a republic, bringing to an end not only the Qing dynasty, but some 4000 years of dynastic rule in China.
