India

Advancement in Culture:

Religion

 Buddhism – is a religion said to be founded by Siddhartha Gautama 2,500 years ago. During the
3rd century B.C., the Indian Emperor of the Maurya Dynasty, Ashoka the Great, made Buddhism
the official religion of India. Buddhism mainly teaches that sufferings in life are constant but one
can be freed from it by cultivating one’s wisdom, virtue and concentration.
 Hinduism - developed from the religion that the Aryans brought to India with them in about
1500 BC. Its beliefs and practices are based on the Vedas, a collection of hymns (thought to refer
to actual historical events) that Aryan scholars had completed by about 800 BC.
 Jainism - Jains trace their history through twenty-four tirthankara and revere Rishabhanatha as
the first Tirthankara. They believe that Jainism originated in the 7th–5th century BCE in the
Ganges basin of eastern India. It teaches liberation of one’s self by correct knowledge, faith and
conduct.
 Sikhism – it is believed that Sikhism was founded in 1946 by Guru Nanak. He and his nine
successors continued to shape its ideas until 16th and 17th century. Its religious practices were
formalized by Guru Gobind Singh Ji on 13 April 1699.

Foodts

 Bengali Food – This cuisine is famous for its use of five essential spices: mustard, fenugreek
seed, cumin seed, aniseed, and black cumin seed. The Bengali foods highlights the perfect blend
between sweet and spicy flavors.
 Gujarati Food – this cuisine, also known as the Gujarati Thali, showcases an assortment of
vegetable dishes arranged as a platter. A typical Gujarati Thali is consisted of rotli, dal, rice and
shaak/sabzi
 Kashmiri Food – Kashmiri cuisine focuses on rice as its staple food that is complimented with
varied preparations or various cooking of meat.
 Mughlai Cuisine – It presents a combination of South Asian cuisine with cooking styles and
recipes of Central Asian and Iranian cuisine. The Mughlai Cuisine varies from extremely mild to
spicy, and is associated with a distinctive aroma and taste of ground and whole spices.
 Punjabi Food - Punjabi cuisine is known for its rich, buttery flavours along with the extensive
vegetarian and meat dishes. It is heavily influenced by the agriculture and farming lifestyle Main
dishes include Sarson da saag and Makki Ki Roti
 Rajathani Food - The cuisine of Rajasthan is primarily vegetarian. The spice content is quite high
in comparison to other Indian cuisines, but the food is absolutely scrumptious. Rajasthanis use
ghee for cooking most of the dishes. Rajasthani food is well known for its spicy curries and
delicious sweets.
 South Indian Cuisine - The cuisine of South India is known for its light, low calorie appetizing
dishes. The traditional food of South India is mainly rice based. The cuisine is famous for its
 wonderful mixing of rice and lentils to prepare some of their famous dishes: dosas, vadas, idlis
and uttapams.

Clothing

 Dhoti – traditional Indian clothing for men. It is a piece of unstitched cloth that is usually 4.5
yards long that is tied around the waist and legs.
 Kurta – a long loose shirt primarily worn by men but now became a unisex dress that both men
and women can wear.
 Indian Salwar Kameez – a traditional dress combination worn by women and, in some regions,
by men. Salwars are basically trousers with an unusual wide at the waist, while the kameez is a
long shirt or tunic.
 Indian Sari – is an unstitched piece of clothing, usually 4 to 9 meters long depending on the style
which you want to drape it.
 Men Sherwani – is a long coat resembling achkan in styling. It is buttoned up to the collar and
lengthwise. It is usually below the knee.
 Turban – hair turban is a headdress that basically consists of a long piece of unstitched cloth that
is wrapped around the head.

Language

 Hindi – the dialect known as khadi boli. Hindi and English is used as India’s Official language. As
of now, they don’t have a specified National Language due to their wide variety of languages
used in different regions of India. It is written in the form of Devanagari script.

Festival

 Diwali – also known as Festival of Lights, the festival marks the return of Lord Rama, along with
his wife Sita and brother Lakshmana, after a long exile of 14 years. People light outside their
homes to symbolize the inner light that protects them from spiritual darkness.
 Holi - also known as the festival of colors, signifies the victory of good (Prince Prahlad) over evil
(Holika) and the arrival of spring. On the day of the event, people gather in open areas and apply
dry and wet colors to each other, with some carrying water guns and colored water-filled
balloons.
 Dussehra - It celebrates the death of the demon king Ravana at the hands of Lord Rama,
therefore, this festival symbolizes the victory of good over evil.
China

Advancement in Culture

Religion

 Buddhism – it is generally believed that it was spread to China in 67 AD during the Han Dynasty
(206 BC-220) from Hotan in Xinjiang to Central China. Chinese Buddhism combines Taoism and
Mahayana Buddhism. They both Chinese Buddhist believes that Buddha is not just a teacher, but
also a god to be prayed to for help.
 Confucianism – Confucius lived from 551 to 479 BC. His teachings later became the basis for
religious and moral life throughout China. It obtained its stable position under the reign of
Emperor Wu of Han Dynasty (202BC-220AD).
 Taoism –was founded by Lao-Tzu in the sixth century BCE in China. This religion rose during the
end of the Zhou dynasty and during the Period of the Warring States, which emphasizes living in
harmony with the Tao.
 Islam – according to Chinese Muslims, Islam was introduced in China on 615 AD when four
Sahaba visited China to trade and to preach the new faith. Others argue that it was transmitted
to China during the Tang and Song dynasties (618–1279) via the overland and maritime Silk
Roads due to China-Arb trade relations.

Food

 Shandong Cuisine – this cuisine is famous for its use of wide selection of ingredients and use of
different cooking methods. The ingredients used are mainly domestic animals, birds, seafood
and vegetables. Its cooking techniques include quick frying (bao), stewing (pa) and roasting
(kao).
 Guangdong Cuisine – what differentiates Guangdong Cuisine its lightly cooked fresh vegetables
and meat, and sweet sauces. Cantonese chef aims to bring out or highlight the original flavor of
the vegetable, meat, or fruit. So little spice or sugar is used generally.
 Sichuan Cuisine - is characterized by its bold, yet distinct flavors with the pungence and spiciness
that comes from its seasonings: Sichuan pepper, black pepper, chili, broad bean chili paste,
shallots, ginger, and garlic. Sichuan cuisine uses pork, beef, fish vegetables and tofu.
 Hunan Cuisine - is well known for its hot and spicy flavors, fresh aroma and deep colors.
Stewing, frying, pot-roasting, braising and smoking are the most common cooking method used.
Ingredients for Hunan dishes are many and varied due to intensive farming.
 Jiangsu Cuisine – this cuisine highlights marine, moderate, and natural flavors. Fish, herbs and
vegetables are common ingredients. They don't add much salt, sugar or seasonings to show the
distinct natural flavors of the ingredients.
 Zhejiang Cuisine – it is mainly divided into 3 styles, the Hangzou that is characterized by rich
variations and the use of bamboo shoots, Shaoxing which specializes in poultry, and Ningbo
specializing in seafood. Overall, Zhejiang cuisine is not greasy and has a fresh and soft flavour
with a mellow fragrance.
  Fujian Cuisine – the cuisine showcases seafood, river fish and shrimp. It is known to be light but
flavorful, soft and tender with the emphasis of umami taste, while maintaining the original
flavor of the main ingredients.
 Anhui Cuisine – it is known for its use wild herbs from both land and sea as its main ingredient. It
features elaborate choices of cooking materials and the strict control of cooking process.
Braising and Stewing are commonly used.

Clothing

 Hanfu – it is a national formal wear of the Han people. It consisted of a yi, a narrow-cuffed,
knee-length tunic tied with a sash, and a narrow, ankle-length skirt, called chang, worn with a
bixi, a length of fabric that reached the knees.
 Tang Zhuang – a traditional Chinese coat. It combines traditional Chinese elements and western
solid cutting method. Its design includes a Mandarin collar, front opening and knotted Chinese
buttons, with shoulder pads for better fit.
 Cheongsam – a traditional Chinese close-fitting dress for women. Its main characteristics are a
mandarin collar, fitted waist, Chinese knotted buttons, hemmed slits on two sides, and a
tailored form fit. It is usually made from satin brocade, silk, or cotton.
 Zhongshan Zhuang – a type of male attire, it was designed by combining the western-style suit
and Chinese clothing. It features four pockets, five bigger central buttons in the front and three
smaller cuff-buttons on either sleeve.

Language and Character

 Standard Chinese – it is a standardized form of spoken Chinese based on the Beijing dialect of
Mandarin. In different regions, the standard of Chinese varies. The Mandarin is the standard
designated language on the Chinese mainland and Taiwan; while Cantonese is the prime dialect
of Hong Kong.
 Traditional Chinese – This character set is used in Hong Kong and Taiwan. This is a more
traditional version of Chinese that has been written by people for thousands of years. The
characters often have more strokes than in Simplified Chinese.
 Simplified Chinese – is standardize and the simplified version of Chinese traditional characters
which is used in China, Malaysia and Singapore.

Festival

 Chinese New Year- also called Spring festival, the holiday was traditionally a time to honor
household and heavenly deities as well as ancestors. It was also a time to bring family together
for feasting. The festival begins on the first day of the first month of the traditional Chinese
calendar and ends with Lantern Festival
 Duanwu Festival - This day people will celebrate it through dragon-boat races, especially in
China’s southern areas, and by eating Zong Zi. The festival now occurs on the 5th day of the 5th
month of the traditional Chinese calendar
 Qingming Festival - also known as Tomb Sweeping Day, people commemorate and show respect
to their ancestors by visiting their graves, offering food, tea or wine, burning incense. Both the
Han and minority ethnic groups offer sacrifices to their ancestors and sweep the tombs of the
deceased.