Tea culture
China is the birthplace of tea and tea culture. Our ancestors discovered tea more than 4,700 years ago. The cultivation, brewing, and consumption of tea evolved over time to create China's rich tea culture encompassing a diverse range of tea traditions, including tea drinking etiquette; customs, songs, and ceremonies associated with preparing and drinking tea; tea utensils; and tea-inspired art and literature.
An old saying goes: "Firewood, rice, oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, and tea are the seven essentials of daily life for or- dinary people". Tea drinking became a popular habit among the general population during the Three Kingdoms (220-265), Western Jin (265-316), and Eastern Jin (317-420) dynasties. Eventually, it made its way to the royal court and was em- braced by the upper class of society. Tea continued to grow in popularity during the Tang Dynasty (618-907), and the tea connoisseur Lu Yu (c.733-804) wrote the Classic of tea, the world's first monograph on tea culture. Tea processing methods evolved over time, from steaming tea leaves in the Tang and Song dynasties (618-1279) to steaming loose teas in the Yuan Dynasty (1206-1368), and then to roasting and dehydration in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). The distinction between black tea and green tea did not come about until the invention of black tea during the Qing Dynasty (1616-1911). Today, tea culture has blended into all aspects of social life and tea has become a beloved drink among the people.
Ubiquitous in everyday life, tea is served steeped or boiled in homes, workplaces, tea houses, restaurants, and temples. The values of modesty, harmony, courtesy, and respect are embodied through sharing tea with guests, relatives, neighbors, and friends, contributing to moral and personality development.
Tea has become popular worldwide. Since ancient times, tea and tea culture have served as important means for China to communicate with the outside world. Thanks to the ancient Silk Road and the Tea Horse Road, tea culture spread around the world and is now appreciated by people of many countries. This has facilitated exchanges and mutual learning between world civilizations, as well as contributing to the development of human society. In 2022, China's traditional tea processing techniques and associated social practices were included in the UNESCO Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
茶文化
中國是茶葉的故鄉(xiāng)，也是茶文化的發(fā)源地。上古時期的先人們發(fā)現(xiàn)并利用茶，距今已有4700多年歷史。人們在產(chǎn)茶、制茶、飲茶等過程中形成了茶文化，包括茶史、茶俗、茶歌、茶禮、茶具、茶藝、茶文學等。
“開門七件事，柴米油鹽醬醋茶。”三國兩晉時期，民間已有飲茶的習慣，并逐漸傳入宮廷，影響到社會上層人士。到了唐代，飲茶之風更盛，茶文化的集大成者陸羽（約733-804）所著述的《茶經(jīng)》是世界第一部茶文化專著。從唐宋時期煎茶，元代“蒸青散茶”，到明代“炒青”制茶，再到清代產(chǎn)生紅茶、綠茶之分，茶文化融入社會生活的方方面面，成為人們最喜愛的飲品。
在當代，飲茶和品茶貫穿于中國人的日常生活。人們采取泡、煮等方式，在家庭、工作場所、茶館、餐廳、寺院等場所飲用茶與分享茶。以茶敬客、以茶敦親、以茶睦鄰、以茶結友，體現(xiàn)了謙、和、禮、敬的價值觀，對中國人的道德修養(yǎng)和人格塑造產(chǎn)生了深遠影響。
茶起源于中國，盛行于世界。自古以來，茶和茶文化便作為中國對外交流的重要媒介，通過古代絲綢之路和茶馬古道等向世界傳播，深受各國人民喜愛，在世界文明交流互鑒和人類社會可持續(xù)發(fā)展中發(fā)揮著重要作用。2022年，“中國傳統(tǒng)制茶技藝及其相關習俗”列入聯(lián)合國教科文組織人類非物質文化遺產(chǎn)代表作名錄。
