The Chinese civilization dates as far back as 550,000 years. In those 550,000 years, the Chinese culture has evolved and changed the world. The impact has been astronomical. As a matter of fact, the Chinese culture has made such an impact that its presence is evident in nearly every modern, civilized culture today. It can be seen in the clothes we wear, the food we eat, the movies we watch, and many of the everyday items we use. The Chinese invented one of the first independently-created writing systems, paper, eye glasses, the wheel barrow, movable type, rubber, and much more. In addition to being one of the oldest civilizations, it may be the most important in history.

My desire is to share information about this incredible culture and to help you understand just how wonderful and important it is. In order for you to learn more about this beautiful culture, a new article will be posted each Friday detailing a different aspect of Chinese culture. Some of the topics: Chinese films, music, history and information about dynasties, Chinese medicine, spirituality, and more. The Chinese culture is vast, therefore article topics are nearly endless and new, fresh information will be added each week for years to come. In time, we may have one of the most comprehensive websites about Chinese culture on the Net!

In order for you to keep up with all the new articles and site updates, please sign up for the Chinese Culture newsletter. To sign up, enter your e-mail address in one the boxes marked “Free Newsletter!" located to the right and at the bottom of all articles, including this one. I promise that your e-mail address will be kept absolutely private, you will never receive any SPAM, and the newsletters will be brief yet full of the information you want to know about. When you sign up for the newsletter, nothing but the newsletter will be sent to you.

Once you sign up, you will be redirected to a page telling you that you have been added to the newsletter mailing list. Shortly after, you will receive a test newsletter. If you do not receive the test newsletter in your Inbox, please check your SPAM folder. Please make sure you add the newsletter address to your safe list if the test newsletter is sent to your SPAM folder. Adding the address to your safe list guarantees that you will receive the newsletter each week.

I look forward to sharing this culture with you. Hopefully, you grow to love it as much as I do!

Heather J. Hasan, Chinese Culture Editor