As we near the end of another year, here’s a good expression to learn in Chinese: 时间过得真快 (shí jiān guò dé zhēn kuài). It’s similar to saying “how time flies” in English, and I always find myself saying it this time of year. We have a tradition here at the blog of looking back on the year to see which posts resonated with our readers the most. Here are the most popular Chinese blog posts of 2021 in a Top 10 list.

10. Talking About Hobbies in Chinese

Who doesn’t love talking about their hobbies (爱好 Ài hào)? In this post, you’ll get a vocabulary list with 25 common hobbies in Chinese. There are also some useful grammar tidbits about asking and answering questions. This post should give you the confidence you need to strike up a conversation with someone about their hobbies. I made lots of friends in China over the years by talking about my favorite hobbies. My hobbies are traveling and listening to music (我的爱好是旅行和听音乐 wǒ de àihào shì lǚxíng hé tīng yīnyuè). How about you? (你呢? nǐ ne?)

9. Beijing Kao Ya: A Delectable Duck

When it comes to the most iconic dishes in China, it’s hard to top Beijing roast duck (北京烤鸭 běi jīng kǎo yā). This delectable duck is definitely a feast for an emperor. This post has everything you need to know about kao ya, including its history, how it’s cooked, and how to eat it.

8. China Shijiazhuang Lockdown

There’s no doubt that the ongoing pandemic has been on our minds all year. The capital of Hebei province, Shijiazhuang (石家庄 shí jiā zhuāng) had an outbreak at the beginning of the year and quickly imposed strict lockdown measures. Ayana wrote a great post that shares the news of the lockdown in this city of 11 million while teaching you a lot of Chinese in the process.

7. Chinese Weather Vocabulary

Talking about the weather (天气 tiān qì) is something we can all relate to. It’s a go-to topic of conversation for making small talk all around the world. This post gives you a lot of useful weather-related vocabulary. You can also use grammar tips to learn how to ask and answer questions about the weather. There’s even a Chinese weather forecast you can watch to practice your listening skills.

6. The Lion Dance

Have you ever seen a traditional Chinese lion dance (舞狮 wǔ shī)? I’ve seen quite a few in China as well as some in US cities with a Chinatown like Chicago and San Francisco. Lion dances are a big part of Spring Festival celebrations, as they’re believed to bring good luck for the New Year. Read all about this fascinating Chinese folk art in this great post from Ayana.

5. Libraries in China

Searching for information online is great and all, but there’s no substitute for going to a library (图书馆 tú shū guǎn). In honor of Library Week in the US back in April, I wrote this post about libraries in China. There’s a vocabulary list you can use as well as a brief history of libraries in the country. You’ll also learn about the amazing “City Eye” (城市之眼 chéng shì zhī yǎn) library in Tianjin.

4. China’s 2021 Holiday Calendar

Do you know all of the public holidays in China and when they are? I usually write one of these posts at the start of every year to help people mark their calendars for all the official and unofficial holidays in China. Learn the names and dates for several Chinese holidays like the Dragon Boat Festival (端午节 duān wǔ jié) and watch a few of my videos celebrating them over the years.

3. The Year of the Ox

This year, Chinese New Year fell on February 12th. It’s the Year of the Ox (牛年 niú nián) according to the Chinese zodiac. Find out why the ox is the 2nd animal in the 12-year sequence in this post. In addition, learn some characteristics of people born in the Year of the Ox to build up your vocabulary. This is my favorite year in the Chinese zodiac as it’s the one I was born in! How about you?

2. China’s Square Dancing

One of the most popular activities in public parks and plazas all across China is square dancing (广场舞 guǎng chǎng wǔ). Anyone can participate, but it’s particularly popular with middle-aged or elderly women. That explains the Chinese name that can best be translated as “dancing grannies” (广场舞大妈们 guǎngchǎng wǔ dàmāmen). I know I had a blast dancing with them on my “Santa in China” trip when I visited Guizhou. Learn more about this cultural phenomenon in this post.

1. Chinese Time Phrases

There are lots of great time phrases in Chinese that can help you speak more fluently. Ayana teaches several of them in this insightful post, such as “recently” (最近 zuì jìn) and “in a flash” (一转眼 yī zhuǎn yǎn). Our readers must have found this post very helpful because it was the most popular one of 2021.

 

Well, that’s a wrap for another year here on the Chinese blog. Thanks again to all of our readers for your continued support. Let us know what you would like to see on the blog in 2022 and we’ll do our best to cover the topics you want to learn more about. Until next year…

新年快乐!
xīnnián kuàilè
Happy New Year!