Brief Commentary

Tea is an important and meaningful part of Chinese tradition and culture. As Chinese society developed, the production of tea has played a role in driving economic development while the consumption of tea has remained a practice of daily life (Jiang, 2021). However, when was tea discovered? How did Chinese tea evolve? Why it is so important in Chinese culture? In this sub-topic, it will focus mainly on talking about the three questions. 

In the end of this sub-topic, both the interactive activity (i.e. online discussion) and the assessment (i.e. online quiz) are provided. 

Learning Outcomes

Individuals will be able to expand their knowledge of Chinese tea culture. 

After learning from the first sub-topic, learners will be able to…

• Identify the origins, history, and evolution of Chinese tea clearly. 
• Explain the importance of tea-drinking in Chinese culture specifically. 

The Origins of Chinese Tea

The origin of the use of tea as a beverage is unclear, although references to tea in Chinese literature can go back approximately 5,000 years (Parkinson, 2019). As a result of the biological, ethnic and cultural diversity of China, the origin of tea is highly diverse as well. Tea has been documented in Chinese ancient literature inconsistently. According to the article, “Insect Tea, A Wonderful Work in the Chinese Tea Culture”, the authors used two examples to explain the inconsistent descriptions of tea in Chinese ancient literature. For example, “it is clearly indicated that tea was a sweet-tasting plant in the ‘Odes’, while tea was indicated as a bitter-tasting plant in the ‘Eyra’” (Xu, Pan, et.al., 2013).

Although there are many Chinese literary writings about tea, it is still hard for historians to exactly pinpoint when it was exactly discovered. From the article, “History of Tea in China & How it Spread Across the World”, the author described that “in 1978, Archeologists surprisingly found tea relics in the Tianluo mountains that were estimated to be 7,000 years old”(2015). Then, after a decade of research, the Archeologists published in 2015 that “these roots are about 6,000 years old” (2015). “This confirmed it must have been the Hemudu culture, flourishing in 7,000 BC and 6,000 BC, that started cultivating and brewing tea”(2015). 

The Evolution of Tea in China

From the web article, “Chinese Tea Culture”, Li clearly describes the history and evolution of tea in China (Li, 1993): 

• According to records of pre-Qin period, in remote times, apart from serving as a drink and being used for medical purposes, tea was also used at sacrificial rites.
• In the royal family of Zhou period, there were people charged with the task of tea-related affairs. 
• No tea was grown in the north in the Han dynasty. it was therefore considered a rarity by the imperial court, the nobility and high officials. in Sichuan province during eastern Han, however, tea began to appear as a commodity in the market.
• Tea trading was on constant rise during the Jin dynasty (256-316) and tea-drinking spread far and wide. 
• Vigorous development of Chinese tea culture was witnessed in Sui-Tang and Song dynasties. Chinese tea began to spread overseas during Sui and Tang dynasties. It spread by sea to Korea and Japan to the east and to the south pacific islands, Thailand, Burma, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and India to the south. It spread by land to Persia and Arab countries along the Silk Road. 
• Chinese tea did not reach Europe until trade began between the east and west in the 16th century. 

Nowadays, tea is one of the most popular beverages in the whole world. It is ranked at “a level of being the second nonalcoholic drink after that of water (Qin, Pang, et. al., 2013). 

The YouTube video below provides a brief introduction about the history of tea. 

The Importance of Tea in Chinese Culture

In the past several thousand years, “extensive knowledge has been accumulated in China on tea cultivation, production and consumption, which forms the unique Chinese tea culture” (Xu, Pan, et. al., 2013). Chinese tea culture developed rapidly during the Tang dynasty and has infiltrated Chinese society deeply since then (Xu, Pan, et. al., 2013). Additionally, a number of monographs were published during Tang and Song dynasties. One of the most renowned books on tea is Lu Yu’s. As Li stated, “this book makes a comprehensive and systematic summary of the experiences in tea-growing, tea-processing and tea-drinking and therefore it regarded as the classical work on tea” (Li, 1993). Therefore, it exerts tremendous influence on the development of Chinese tea culture. 

Also, tea has an extremely close relationship to Chinese culture, and its study covers a wide field and has very rich content. As Li described in “Chinese Tea Culture”, Chinese tea culture covers almost all realms of life, both physical and spiritual. “Tea culture is a branch of learning that takes as its subject of study the relationship between tea-marketing and tea-drinking on the one hand and the various aspects of political, economic, and cultural life on the other as well as the influence they exert on each other” (Li, 1993). Therefore, tea plays a quite meaningful and important role in Chinese culture and traditions. 

Interactive Activities 

Online Discussion

• Have you heard any stories about Chinese tea or Chinese tea culture? If yes, please share it with you peers. If not, please find one on the web.
• Please click HERE to participate in the online discussion on this subtopic.

Formative Assessment 

Online Quiz

• After learning from this subtopic, please click HERE to complete the online quiz as a formative assessment.
• NOTE: each question ONLY has one correct answer. Instant feedbacks and grade will be given to you after submitting.

References 

Jiang, F. (2021). Chinese Tea, Discover Chinese Tea Culture and History. Retrieved from: https://www.chinahighlights.com/travelguide/chinese-tea/

History of Tea in China & How it Spread Across the World (2015). Retrieved from: https://www.teasenz.com/chinese-tea/tea-history.html

Parkinson, R. (2019). Ancient Chinese Tea History and Fascinating Facts. Retrieved from: https://www.thespruceeats.com/origins-of-chinese-tea-694325

Qin, Z., Pang, X., Chen, D., Cheng, H., Hu, X., & Wu, J. (2013). Evaluation of Chinese tea by the electronic nose and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry: Correlation with sensory properties and classification according to grade level. Food Research International, 53(2), 864-874. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodres.2013.02.005

Teng, S. (2017). The History of Tea. TED-Ed. YouTube. Retrieved from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LaLvVc1sS20&ab_channel=TED-Ed

Xiusong, L. (1993). Chinese tea culture. Journal of Popular Culture, 27(2), 75-90.

XU, L., PAN, H., LEI, Q., XIAO, W., PENG, Y., & XIAO, P. (2013). Insect tea, a wonderful work in the chinese tea culture: TEA – FROM BUSHES TO MUGS:COMPOSITION, STABILITY AND HEALTH ASPECTS. Food Research International, 53(2), 629-635.