Taiwanese Cultural Taboos

Group 1Team Leader: 90321Team Members: 80107 71003 71026 70930

Taboos in marriage

1. The color “white or black” are related to death. It is O.K. to dress in white for ordinary life, but it is not good for a joyful occasion like a wedding banquet as a guest . But the newly wedding couples can wear the white and red wedding dresses.

2. Don’t put the money in the white envelopes to give to the newly wedding couples because this is inauspicious.

1. If you say "watch out for the knife or you will hurt yourself", it implies your friend might indeed hurt himself though you don't want this to happen.

2. Don’t take out the garbage during the Chinese New Year because you will throw your good luck away.

3. The children can not cry and everyone can not say the bad things during the Chinese New Year.

Taboos during the Chinese New Year

Number four is an inauspicious number because its pronunciation is similar to death in Chinese. However, number 8 is auspicious because it means prosperity.

Number

1. Don’ t go swimming or stay close to the water because the ghost will make you drown.

2. Don’ get married in July. It Is not an auspicious ocassion to move houses, either.

Ghost Month

You don’t want to meet me at night.

1. Don’t give $400 or $4000 because “4” means to die.

2. Don’t give the gifts like handkerchiefs because they are related to sad things. That is why you need to use your handkerchiefs.

3. Don’t give knives and scissors because they mean that you will break up the relationships with your friends.

The taboos about giving gifts

If you want someone to come to you, don't wave them over with an upturned finger. This is impolite. Wave them over with your fingers turned down, as if they were sweeping something toward you. The same motion is used when hailing a cab.

Body language

1. When using a toothpick in public, cover your mouth with your hand.

2. After eating a meal, never leave your chopsticks sticking up in the leftover rice at the bottom of your bowl. This is what people do at shrines when offering a meal to their ancestors' ghosts. Doing it in a restaurant would be a terrible curse.

Taboos about Eating

The end. Thank you for you attention.