Ninchanese
It’s Halloween time soon! How are you planning on celebrating this spooky holiday? We have a great Nincha activity for you! It’s also a way to train your vocabulary for Halloween in Chinese.
What is Halloween called in Chinese?
Halloween is 万圣节 (wànshèngjié).
It litterally means the “thousand – or many – spirit holiday”.
Note: The Chinese name also covers the next day, which is known as “All Saints Day” in other parts of the world!
To wish someone a Happy Halloween, say 万圣节快乐 (wànshèngkuàilè!)!
A big Halloween tradition is carving pumpkins. What are you going to carve on your pumpkin?
A pumpkin is called a 南瓜 (Nánguā).
Are you going to stick with the traditional scary/smiley face for your Jack-O-Lantern or attempt something different? Your favourite Chinese characters, perhaps?
Can you guess what a Jack-O-Lantern is called in Chinese?
Hint think about it in no-nonsense mode. How would you simply describe a Jack-O-Lantern to someone?
What would you tell them? A Jack-O Lantern is, really, a light in a pumpkin! So that’s how the Chinese call a Jack-O Lantern : 南瓜灯(Nánguādēng). This literally means: a pumpkin light.
Carve your pumpkin like a Nincha!
This is our 南瓜灯 project: a lucky Nincha cat Jack-o-lantern!
Here are the instructions if you want to give it a try too!
Happy trick or treating!
The Nincha Team
Ninchanese is a new platform where you’ll have fun learning Chinese. We’re still working on it for now, so sign up to try the beta for free when we launch! And stay in touch with us on Facebook, Twitter, Google + and Weibo.
