Thanksgiving Day is a special holiday in the United States and Canada. Families and friends     1     to eat and give thanks for their blessings.

Thanksgiving Day is really a harvest festival. This is why it     2     in late fall,   after the crops are harvested.

The first New England Thanksgiving did celebrate a rich     3     harvest. Early in the 16th century,   the     4     Pilgrims landed at what is now Plymouth,   Massachusetts. But in the first winter of their     5     they had a difficult time. They suffered a lot and many of the Pilgrims even     6     to death. It was in the next year that they     7     a good harvest. So Governor (州长) Bradford declared a three-day     8    . The Pilgrims invited Indian friends to join them for their special feast. Everyone brought food. Such is the     9     of Thanksgiving Day.

In time,   other colonies (殖民地) began to celebrate a day of thanksgiving. But it took years before Thanksgiving Day became a national     10    . During the Civil War,   President Abraham Lincoln announced the last Thursday of November 1863 as a day of thanksgiving. Today,   Americans celebrate this happy harvest festival on the fourth Thursday in November while Canadians, their neighbours, celebrate Thanksgiving Day on the second Monday in October.

Zhang Hanliang, a martial arts teacher at Tianshui Normal University in Gansu province, has produced many traditional Chinese martial arts videos in the past years,     1     sixteen million viewers at home and abroad on the online     2     Bilibili.

Zhang, now 35 years old, has been     3     martial arts since she was seven. Thanks to her hard work, Zhang won her first sword (剑) championship in Gansu province at 13. She then got sword and spear titles at a     4     level when she was 17, and at 20, she won a series of championship titles in various categories. In 2007, Zhang began to work as a martial arts teacher at Tianshui Normal University, getting new     5     such as first-class national athlete and first-class national judge of martial arts.

In addition to her daily teaching tasks, Zhang has been     6     to France, Russia, Malaysia and other countries many times to teach martial arts. “Martial arts can be a bridge for     7     exchanges between China and other countries,” said Zhang, adding that she wanted to     8     martial arts to the audience through the     9    . And she hoped more and more foreigners could     10     and love martial arts.

To help increase knowledge and appreciation of China’s ancient cultural heritage, a group of researchers and scientists from China and other countries have recorded and collected digital     1     of cultural relics from the Mogao     2     in Dunhuang, Gansu Province, northwest of China. A large number of     3     digital photographs have been produced since the international project started in 1994. The group hopes to promote even wider interest around the world in China’s ancient history, culture, and     4     by sharing digital photos on the Internet. They also hope to further educate people     5     about the importance of safeguarding historical and cultural relics for future generations to understand and appreciate.

When naming a child, the culture is not the same in different places.

In many European countries, children are named after the names of relatives within their families. For example, in Italy, children are     1    named after their grandparents. Naturally, the parents     2    use the father’s family names, then they will use the mother’s family names,     3    in big family.

In China, some names are connected with the     4    of the date and the time of the children. It is thought that a name can     5    a child. If a boy is given the first name “坤”, maybe, he is short of earth according to his birth. The Chinese character “坤” is made up of two parts. The     6    part means earth in English. Parents believe that the boy with a name of earth will not be short of earth any longer in his life.

In an African country called Ghana’s Akan, the time when they were born     7    his or her name. But there are some     8    between boys and girls. For example, a boy born on Friday is named Kofi,     9    a girl born on the same day is named Afua.

No matter where the name comes from, a name is the first gift to a child in life. For that reason, all names are     10    .

When we visit museums, we see cultural artifacts -from everyday household items to precious carvings and statues, that give us glimpses into the     1     cultures and communities from around the world. However,     2     surrounds these artifacts and whether or not countries should return these pieces of culture if they were stolen or forcefully taken during colonization.

By the 18th and 19th centuries, European countries such as Britain, France and the Netherlands had     3     many African and Asian countries. During their rule, they either seized artifacts or took them as spoils of wars, and brought them to their own countries where they are now displayed in museums.

In 2017, the Government of Benin in West Africa     4     with the British Museum in London to return their renowned Benin Bronzes, a     5     of thousands of metal sculptures and plaques, which were previously hung in the royal palace of the Kingdom of Benin.

The debate regarding this issue took a turn in 2018 when under President Emmanuel Macron a report was released that directed that all heritage objects brought to French museums (without the permission of their original countries) be     6    . With the official release of this report. museums all across Europe began reconsidering their previous policies on colonial treasures.

Those who propose returning these objects to their original homes argue that with technology enabling virtual museum tours, returning these artifacts to their homeland does not take away the opportunity to learn about them. Furthermore, the country of origin will receive a     7     part of their heritage back, and these artifacts will be given a chance to be truly appreciated under proper historical context. Those against the restoration claim that culture is a     8     treasure and the artifacts are in fact “cultural ambassadors” that promote     9     and understanding They believe that while stealing them was wrong, history is full of “good” and “bad” actors. Moreover, they feel that keeping the cultural objects in the current museums have kept millions of artifacts     10     from disfiguration and damage.

Do you want to have a further knowledge of Chinese culture?Here comes your opportunity:the Student Union will     1     a Tang Poetry Recitation Contest.As scheduled,the     2     is to be held on January 5th,2021.Every contestant is supposed to     3     two poems.Please get prepared.Above all,it’s recommended that you should read Three Hundred Tang Poems in advance,and learn to     4     the beauty of ancient Chinese culture.Whoever feels interested in Chinese culture can sign up for it.The     5     is December 16th.

Jianzhi, which has a high     1     in China, originated in the 6th century. The ancient people used their     2     skills to cut papers into animals or people. People either buried them with the dead or burned them on the funerals, wishing that the things that paper     3     could be with the dead. Later, they were used during festivals to decorate gates and windows.

Chinese paper cutting is good at multiple images together, and produces better results in the ideal. At the same time, Chinese paper cutting is also good at     4    out of the way with mascot. People desire to pray ample(充足的) food and clothing, health and longevity. They use Chinese paper cutting to     5     their wishes.