{"id":17007,"date":"2022-03-08T18:29:04","date_gmt":"2022-03-08T22:29:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/chinese\/?p=17007"},"modified":"2022-03-08T18:29:04","modified_gmt":"2022-03-08T22:29:04","slug":"celebrating-international-womens-day","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/chinese\/celebrating-international-womens-day\/","title":{"rendered":"Celebrating International Women’s Day"},"content":{"rendered":"

Today is International Women’s Day<\/strong> (\u4eca\u5929\u662f\u56fd\u9645\u5987\u5973\u8282 j\u012bnti\u0101n sh\u00ec gu\u00f3j\u00ec f\u00f9n\u01da ji\u00e9). In this post, we’ll take a closer look at the holiday and learn some Chinese vocabulary related to it. Let’s start out by learning a brief history of this important day.<\/p>\n

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Image by Nyoman Suartawan<\/a> from Pixabay<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

History of International Women’s Day<\/h2>\n

This global holiday dates back to 1909 in New York City in honor of a garment and textile workers’ strike that happened a year prior. It was organized by the Socialist Party of America<\/strong> (\u7f8e\u56fd\u793e\u4f1a\u515a\u7ec4\u7ec7 m\u011bigu\u00f3 sh\u00e8hu\u00ecd\u01ceng z\u01d4zh\u012b) to protest poor working conditions and low wages<\/strong> (\u6076\u52a3\u7684\u5de5\u4f5c\u6761\u4ef6\u548c\u4f4e\u5ec9\u7684\u5de5\u8d44 \u00c8li\u00e8 de g\u014dngzu\u00f2 ti\u00e1oji\u00e0n h\u00e9 d\u012bli\u00e1n de g\u014dngz\u012b).<\/p>\n

The movement made it to Europe the next year, with a Socialist International meeting in Copenhagen<\/strong> (\u54e5\u672c\u54c8\u6839 g\u0113b\u011bnh\u0101g\u0113n). They proposed an annual celebration to honor the contributions of women and in support of universal suffrage<\/strong> (\u666e\u9009\u5236 p\u01d4xu\u01cen zh\u00ec).<\/p>\n

A few years later in 1917, women in Russia<\/strong> (\u4fc4\u7f57\u65af \u00c8lu\u00f3s\u012b) protested for “Bread and Peace<\/strong>” (\u9762\u5305\u4e0e\u548c\u5e73 mi\u00e0nb\u0101o y\u01d4 h\u00e9p\u00edng) – an end to World War I and the food shortages it caused. This was the start of the February Revolution<\/strong> (\u4e8c\u6708\u9769\u547d \u00c8r yu\u00e8 g\u00e9m\u00ecng)<\/p>\n

This took place on February 23 on the Julian calendar, which corresponded to March 8 on the Gregorian calendar that was later adopted by Russia. That’s why International Women’s Day now falls on March 8 around the world.<\/p>\n

Just a few days later, Czar Nicholas II abdicated, ending the 300-year reign of the House of Romanov. The provisional government that followed soon granted women the right to vote.<\/p>\n

Fast forward a few decades when 1975 was declared International Women’s Year. That’s when the United Nations<\/strong> (\u8054\u5408\u56fd li\u00e1nh\u00e9gu\u00f3) began celebrating the holiday. Two years later, they adopted a resolution to encourage member states to designate a United Nations Day for Women’s Rights and International Peace, to be observed on a date of their choice.<\/p>\n

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Image by HANSUAN FABREGAS<\/a> from Pixabay<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

Customs of Int’l Women’s Day<\/h2>\n

Societies everywhere celebrate the important contributions of women in the political, economic, and social fields<\/strong> (\u5404\u5730\u793e\u4f1a\u5e86\u795d\u5987\u5973\u5728\u653f\u6cbb, \u7ecf\u6d4e, \u548c\u793e\u4f1a\u7b49\u9886\u57df\u505a\u51fa\u7684\u91cd\u8981\u8d21\u732e g\u00e8d\u00ec sh\u00e8hu\u00ec q\u00ecngzh\u00f9 f\u00f9n\u01da z\u00e0i zh\u00e8ngzh\u00ec, j\u012bngj\u00ec, h\u00e9 sh\u00e8hu\u00ec d\u011bng l\u01d0ngy\u00f9 zu\u00f2 ch\u016b de zh\u00f2ngy\u00e0o g\u00f2ngxi\u00e0n). The holiday is also meant to further advance the women’s rights movement, advocating for issues such as gender equality and reproductive rights.<\/p>\n

Every year, there United Nations designates a different theme for the holiday. This year’s theme for UN Women’s Day is “Gender Equality for a Sustainable Future”<\/strong> (\u4eca\u5e74\u8054\u5408\u56fd\u5987\u5973\u8282\u7684\u4e3b\u9898\u662f”\u6027\u522b\u5e73\u7b49\u5171\u521b\u53ef\u6301\u7eed\u672a\u6765” j\u012bnni\u00e1n li\u00e1nh\u00e9gu\u00f3 f\u00f9n\u01da ji\u00e9 de zh\u01d4t\u00ed sh\u00ec “x\u00ecngbi\u00e9 p\u00edngd\u011bng g\u00f2ng chu\u00e0ng k\u011b ch\u00edx\u00f9 w\u00e8il\u00e1i”). It’s focused on the dangers of climate change and the important role women are playing in the response. Click here<\/a> to learn more about it.<\/p>\n

In a sign of the times, there’s also an annual hashtag associated with the holiday. This year it’s #BreakTheBias<\/strong> (\u6253\u7834\u504f\u89c1 d\u01cep\u00f2 pi\u0101nji\u00e0n), calling on people to “Imagine a gender-equal world<\/strong>” (\u60f3\u8c61\u4e00\u4e2a\u6027\u522b\u5e73\u7b49\u7684\u4e16\u754c xi\u01cengxi\u00e0ng y\u012bg\u00e8 x\u00ecngbi\u00e9 p\u00edngd\u011bng de sh\u00ecji\u00e8).<\/p>\n

As far as celebrations in China go, this is quite an interesting day. First of all, it’s often referred to in Chinese simply as “3-8 Holiday<\/strong>” (\u4e09\u516b\u8282 s\u0101nb\u0101 ji\u00e9). It’s important to add the \u8282 to signify you’re talking about the holiday, as the Chinese word sanba<\/em> (\u4e09\u516b) is actually insulting to women. It basically means “bitch” and is not something you want to say to a woman!<\/p>\n

Speaking of names, calling the holiday “Women’s Day<\/strong>” (\u5987\u5973\u8282 f\u00f9n\u01da ji\u00e9) had university students feeling left out, as the term \u5987\u5973 generally represents married women. All over China, college-age women began celebrating an alternative “Girl’s Day<\/strong>” (\u5973\u751f\u8282 n\u01dash\u0113ng ji\u00e9) on March 7. On this day, universities will hold special activities for female students.<\/p>\n

Some have also started calling it “Goddess Day<\/strong>” (\u5973\u795e\u8282 n\u01dash\u00e9n ji\u00e9). Across Chinese social media like Weibo, there has been a push to return to the original intention of the holiday. Many have argued that this rebrand has had a sort of “watering down” effect on the real meaning of the holiday.<\/p>\n

While it’s not an official public holiday, many women are given a half-day off of work. It’s also customary for employers to give their female workers small gifts to mark the holiday. It’s also becoming increasingly common for businesses to offer special discounts for women in the month of March. This is especially true on e-commerce sites like Taobao<\/a><\/strong> (\u6dd8\u5b9d\u7f51 \u2013 t\u00e1o b\u01ceo w\u01ceng) and anything related to self-care<\/strong> (\u81ea\u6211\u62a4\u7406 z\u00ecw\u01d2 h\u00f9l\u01d0), such as massage parlors and beauty products.<\/p>\n

To mark the holiday this year, the second female astronaut in China, Wang Yaping<\/strong> (\u738b\u4e9a\u5e73), sent a greeting from space. She is the first woman to be on China’s Tiangong space station. You can view her inspirational message on this International Women’s Day below:<\/p>\n