Cultural heritage artists named

China's Ministry of Culture recently announced 551 artists with official sanction to carry forward the country's intangible cultural heritage, including the Peking Opera and the Mongolian Pastoral Song, Xinhua News Agency reports.

Peking Opera master Mei Baojiu, 73, was among the artists listed. His father, the late Mei Lanfang, was one of the 20th century's most respected performers of the form.

One of China's most important traditional theatrical genres, Peking Opera has been proclaimed an intangible cultural heritage enjoying State-level protection.

The State Council, China's Cabinet, has included 518 art forms as intangible cultural heritage in categories including folk literature, folk music and dance, traditional opera, ballad singing, cross-talk, acrobatics, folk fine arts, traditional handicrafts, traditional medicine and folk customs.

Four Chinese art forms have been listed by UNESCO as world intangible cultural heritage, including the 500-year-old Kunqu Opera, known for its graceful movements and poetic lyrics, the 3,000-year-old guqin seven-string zither, the Twelve Mukams, a 12-part suite of ancient Uygur music, and the Mongolian Pastoral Song.

Shenzhen patent funding rises

Funds to support patents in Shenzhen of South China's Guangdong province will be increased to 110 million yuan this year from about 80 million last year, a colloquium of patent enterprises heard recently.

The meeting discussed new trends and existing problems in Shenzhen IPR protection work. The city will increase funding for patent applications to create a better environment and advance the work of hi-tech companies.

Shenzhen's existing measures to promote IPR work include strengthening support for patent applications, issuing a strategy outline and enabling more independent innovation, participants at the meeting heard.

More than 30,000 domestic patent applications were filed in the city last year, a 20.45 percent increase over 2006. Among them 19,198 were invention patents, accounting for 71.92 percent of the total in Guangdong.

Goubuli becomes 'Go Believe'

Tianjin Goubuli Group Corp, a 150-year-old maker of stuffed buns, has begun hanging English signs with the name Go Believe on its branch restaurants.

The English title sounds similar to our Chinese name - Goubuli and Go Believe," said Zhang Yansen, company chairman.

The Goubuli brand first appeared in 1858. There are various explanations for its name, the most popular of which is that a poor village boy nicknamed Gouzhai - puppy - went to Tianjin and apprenticed at a food shop at the age of 14. Years later he started his own business making steamed stuffed buns.

Each bun has 15 wrinkles and looks like a chrysanthemum. Soft and delicious, the bun soon attracted numerous customers.

Gouzhai became so busy at the shop he had no time to speak with customers, who complained that "Gouzhai sells buns but does not speak to people".

The saying was then shortened to goubuli, which means "Gouzhai does not speak to people."

 

(China Daily 03/03/2008 page9)

2013-07-17