Echoes of Manchu » Culture

Manchu script in modern fashion

Randy Alexander — Thu, 23 Jun 2011 15:55:01 +0000

Having started summer vacation, I brought my kids up to Jilin to see the relatives for a couple weeks. I skipped down to Beijing for a couple days to meet up with Victor Mair, David Moser, Joel Martinsen, Brendan O’Kane, and Syz. On the way back I had to switch trains in Changchun. I found a cell phone charger and while I was waiting for it to charge, a guy came up and stood near me. I glanced at his t-shirt and was very surprised at what I saw.

On his t-shirt was Manchu script being used in the same way that you might find English or other western script (and maybe even more unintelligibly):

Manchu Archery in Global Times

Randy Alexander — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 02:55:55 +0000

The Netherlands’ Peter Dekker studies Manchu archery and has been written up in Global Times.

He also runs a very informative website called Fe Doro (The Old Way).

(Hat tip to Kellen.)

Manchu culture meets the 20th century

Randy Alexander — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 11:51:00 +0000

My sons come out of school every day and there is a big line of vendors waiting there to sell them snacks and toys. The price for most things is 5毛 or 1块 (7-15 US¢). Today my older son’s purchase was a big surprise. Guess what these are:

嘎拉哈! (gālāhà) [This is a game using sheep or pig knee bones.] See this post for more.

The Chinese Wikipedia article linked above does mention that there are plastic pieces available, but this is the first time I’ve seen them.

Sanjiazi 05: Dress-up time

Randy Alexander — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 16:18:16 +0000

Previous entries: 1, 2, 3, 4.

There’s an old stereotype about Asians and cameras. When I was a boy growing up in the Midwest, I remember hearing my father say “I’ve never seen a Chinaman without a camera.” Of course by “Chinaman” he meant anyone with “yellow” skin. This kind of talk sounds almost racist these days, but that’s just how people talked back then, regardless of their views on race. Looking back on my father’s life at that time, I couldn’t say he was racist in any way. During that time I rarely knew or even saw any Asians, but my father worked with people from all over the world every day.

Stereotypes don’t come out of nowhere though. After I got married (to a Chinese girl), my wife and I were living in Manhattan’s Chinatown, and once decided to take a Chinese bus tour to Washington DC. As soon as we got there, the bus stopped in front of the Capitol building and everyone (all Chinese except me) proceded one by one to have their pictures taken in front of it. Then we got back on the bus, drove to the next attraction, and then the same thing again! And again! My wife and I finally decided we would escape and catch up with them later.

Back to Sanjiazi: when the Manchu teacher Shi Junguang (see previous posts, listed above) and I got back to the school office, some of the others were looking at the school’s collection of traditional Manchu costumes. Then someone pointed at me and I was doomed.

Of course, these costumes are not real Manchu clothes, but rather just things that you throw over your street clothes.

The fun begins!

Fun can’t be had alone!

美满 (měimǎn, [this means happy, but could also mean U.S.-Manchu])

The more, the merrier!

Mrs. Wu is on the left, and Mrs. Guan’s charming daughter is on the right. She was already in the spirit and only put the headdress on; the other stuff she had already been wearing.