May Quiz

A monthly quiz of general history, traditions, geography questions for May
1. How would you say 'next month' in Chinese?
下个月 xià gè yuè
上个月 shàng gè yuè
明年 míng nián
jade
Modern Chinese Dushan jade sculpture from central China.
It shows the variability of color within a block of jade. Here the artist has used the variation to exquisite effect.
Image by Artfiber available under a Creative Commons license

2. When did the first known Chinese person visit Britain?
1924
1798
1685
christian, Shen Fuzong

3. An auspicious arrangement of hills is sometimes called?
grasping monkey
magic lotus
hidden dragon
Zhejiang, mountains, view
Zhejiang scenery near Hangzhou including a tea plantation

4. Wade-Giles is a method for doing what?
Decorating porcelain
Writing Chinese with English letters
Sailing a Chinese junk
Taiping Rebellion, museum
Site of King Shiwang's Residence of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom in Jinhua, Zhejiang the key historical sites under state protection. April 2011 Available by Doctoroftcm under a Creative Commons license .

5. The 'Peony Pavilion' is a famous what?
opera
Shanghai building
painting
Peking duck, food, Beijing, Peking duck
Peking duck

6. The noon day gun is fired every day where?
Hong Kong
Shanghai
Lhasa
palace, eunuch, Beijing
Entrance through the Gate of Peace at the Lama Temple Beijing (Yonghegong), or Palace of Peace and Harmony Lama Temple or Yonghegong Lamsery, a renowned lama temple of the Yellow Hat Sect of Lamaism. Building work on the YongHeGong Temple started in 1694 during the Qing Dynasty. It originally served as an official residence for court eunuchs. It was then converted into the court of Prince Yong Zheng (Yin Zhen), a son of emperor KangXi. After YongZheng's ascension to the throne in 1722, half of the building was converted into a lamasery, a monastery for monks of Tibetan Buddhism, while the other half remained an imperial palace. November 2006. Image by Dennis Jarvis from Halifax, Canada available under a Creative Commons license

7. The Uyghur people number over 8 million in which province do they mainly live?
Gansu
Inner Mongolia
Xinjiang
Bejing, street, mcdonalds, people, PKChina-34
Beijing street. September 2019. Image by Paul Kerswill

8. In which dynasty did Emperor Qianlong rule?
Yuan
Qing
Ming
dragon, graphic
Carving of a dragon at a Chinese temple

9. In which Chinese province was the 14th Dalai Lama (present leader) born?
Beijing
Sichuan
Qinghai
Buddhism , prayer wheel
Buddhist prayer wheels at Wudang temple, Inner Mongolia

10. A meeting at Lushan in 1959 brought an end to the career of which revolutionary leader
Peng Dehuai
Lin Biao
Deng Xiaoping
Jiangxi, Lushan, waterfall
Waterfall on Lushan mountains, Jiangxi

11. Why is rice planted in water?
suppress weeds
suppress insect pests
improve flavor
rice, Yunnan
Sheaves of rice set out to dry, Yuanyang, Yunnan

12. Which of these is NOT part of the Buddhist eightfold path to enlightenment
abstain from sex
meditation
act sensitively
luohan, Buddhism
A luóhàn (arhat), found at Yixian, Hebei province, Liao dynasty (907-1125). British Museum, London. Image by David Castor available under a Creative Commons License

13. Under which British sovereign was the first official embassy sent off to China?
King Edward VI
Queen Victoria
King Charles II
Macartney, embassy, kowtow
William Alexander's drawing of the reception of the Macartney embassy to China. Young Thomas Staunton (kneeling not kowtowing) receives a gift from the Emperor. Image by William Alexander available under a Creative Commons License

14. Which European scientist considered the Yi Jing as proof of ancient knowledge of binary arithmetic?
Isaac Newton
Francis Bacon
Leibniz
yi jing
Three gold coins used for Yi Jing fortune telling

15. Which country other than Britain took part in the Opium Wars with China?
France
US
Spain
opium war, sea battle, junk, boat, ship
The East India Company iron steam ship Nemesis, commanded by Lieutenant W. H. Hall, with boats from the Sulphur, Calliope, Larne and Starling, destroying the Chinese war junks in Anson's Bay, on 7 January 1841. Image by Edward Duncan available under a Creative Commons License
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