Visiting a Chinese home and knowing when it's time to leave!

1. 饮茶礼仪－ The Etiquette of Drinking Tea in China
春节期间探亲访友，自然少不了喝茶。饮茶在中国不仅是一种生活习惯，也是
一种源远流长的文化传统。敬茶与品茶都有其各不相同的礼仪。在这里我想跟
大家分享一些喝茶的礼仪。
Chinese New Year is a time for visiting friends and relatives, so naturally it
entails much tea drinking which in China is not just a way of life but also a rich
cultural tradition dating back to ancient times. There are different protocols for
serving and drinking tea. Here are some important aspects of tea drinking
etiquette which I would like to share with you.
1）坐姿： 作为客人的你应端坐椅子中央，双腿并拢，上身挺直，双肩放松，
头正，下颚微收。女性双手搭放在双腿中间或置放面前桌沿；男性双手可分搭
左右两腿侧上方或半握拳轻搭于前方桌沿。切忌两腿分开或翘二郎腿还不停地
抖动。若作为来宾被让于沙发就坐，女性则可正坐或双腿并拢偏向一侧斜坐，
双腿可以交叉，双手如前交握轻搭腿上。男性可双手搭于扶手上，两腿可架成
二郎腿，但双腿必须下垂且不可抖动。
1) Seating posture: You (as the guest) should sit upright in the centre of the
seat with both legs together, back straight, shoulders relaxed, head straight,
and chin tucked in. Females should place their hands together on the middle
of their lap or on the edge of the table in front (if there is one). Males should

2. place both hands on their lap or on the side of the table in a loose fist shape.
The legs must never be apart or crossed one over the other and should never
tremble. If you are invited to sit on a sofa as a guest, females can either sit
straight or sit with their legs slanted to one side or with lower legs crossed
with hands placed in front on the lap. Males can place both hands on the arm
rests and legs can be crossed but must not tremble.
2）回礼：作为客人的第一道礼节是答礼，也叫回礼。当主人为你冲泡了第一泡
茶品，并请你品尝的时候，正式的，正规的第一次回礼是这样的：起身，男性
抱拳（右手握拳左上包上去）；女性合十（双手手掌伸长合在一起）。一鞠躬，
坐下。躬身越低，表示对于主人越发尊敬。
2) Showing appreciation: The rules of etiquette dictate that a guest should
show appreciation to the host which in Chinese is called either "da li" or "hui
li". When the host pours out the first cup of tea for you and invites you to take
a drink the formal, and proper response should be as follows: Stand up. Males
should have their hands folded at chest height in a loosely clenched fist with
the left hand covering the right; females should have their hands held together
with palms together and fingers outstretched (like the hand posture adopted
by westerners when praying). Bow once and then sit down. The lower one
bows the more respect one is showing to the host.
3）品茶：鞠躬后坐下，双手接茶，先闻香，后慢慢啜茶一口，放下茶杯，当然
如果能口中称赞主人，就再好不过啦。切忌“一口闷”。第一泡的第一口茶汤，
千万不可当着主人的面吐了出来！这个，视为极大的失礼，甚至是一种挑衅的
开始。 在主人往桌上的茶杯里斟茶时，客人可用双手或单手轻触一下茶杯，以
表谢意.
3) Tea tasting: After bowing, sit down again and accept the tea cup with both
hands. First, savour the aroma of the tea. Then take a leisurely sip and then
put the tea cup down. After doing this it is always a good idea to say a word of
praise to your host. Never drink the tea down in one go. The first pouring of
tea is very hot. Whatever you do, do not spit the tea out while facing your
host. Such behavior is viewed as being of the utmost rudeness and may even
be construed as an act of provocation. When the host is pouring tea into the
cups on the table it is permissible for the guest to touch the cup lightly with
either both hands or just one in order to signify thanks.
4）扣指礼： 在港澳及中国的有些地区很时兴“扣指礼”。 关于“扣指礼”的传说之
一是这样的： 乾隆皇帝微服私访下江南，来到淞江，带了两个太监，
到一间茶馆店里喝茶。行为随便的乾隆率先落座，拿起茶壶就斟茶，

3. 给自己斟完后就给太监斟。侍从太监不敢下跪施礼，怕暴露了皇上
的身份，于是就将右手的食指与中指弯曲在桌上轻叩了三下，表示
下跪礼，向皇上谢恩。自此“扣指礼”便在民间流传开来。
4) The custom of "tapping the table with two bent fingers": In Hong Kong and
Macau as well as in mainland China, there is a custom of lightly tapping two
bent fingers on the table top when receiving a cup of tea. There are many
stories as to how this custom came about. I would like to share one version
with you: One day the Emperor Xiang Long made a private trip to the south of
the Yangzi River in disguise. When he came to the Song River ( in modern
day Jiangsu Province) he went to a tea house with two eunuchs who were
accompanying him on his trip. The easy-going emperor took a seat first and
took hold of a tea pot to pour some tea. After pouring his own tea he then
poured for the two eunuchs as well. The attending eunuchs did not dare to
prostrate themselves before the Emperor for fear of giving away his identity.
Instead, in order to express their thanks, they lightly tapped the table three
times with the knuckles of the forefingers and index fingers of their right hands
to signify kneeling before the Emperor. Since then the custom of "tapping the
table with two bent fingers" has become very popular when receiving a cup of
tea.
5）最后很重要的一点：当主人停止为你斟茶一段时间后，突然问你要不要再喝
一些茶。你应该知道主人是在发“逐客令。或许你会觉得这种做法有些唐突，其
实不然。不要忘记春节期间，主人要招待很多串门的亲戚朋友，只有这样主人
才可以更好地掌握时间，从而也可以使客人避免因逗留时间太短而得罪主人。
因此，这道“逐客令”对主人及客人都行之有效！
5) Last but not least: when the host stops pouring tea for a while and then
suddenly asks if you would like some more you should be aware that this is
the host's way of politely indicating that it is time for the guests to leave. This
might seem rather abrupt behaviour to westerners, but in Chinese society it is
not. Remember that at Chinese New Year Chinese homes may receive many
visitors. This custom enables hosts to ensure that time is properly allotted to
each batch of visitors whilst also enabling visitors to avoid making their visits
too short and thereby offending their host. Consequently, this final rule of
etiquette, far from being unfriendly, serves a useful purpose to host and
guests alike.
Happy Tea Drinking from Go Go Mandarin!