7 popular 2025 stories celebrating Chinese culture, from seal carving to waffles and tofu
The art of carving stone stamps, the popularity of egg waffles, a twist on cheongsam – check out these Chinese culture stories from 2025
Chinese culture is a rich blend of ancient traditions, core philosophies and strong family values that have influenced the region – and the world – through its arts, cuisine, philosophy and history.
Here, we revisit seven stories of 2025 that celebrate Chinese culture, from a story on Yang Enhua, who won a global competition playing the erhu, to a designer who gives the classic cheongsam a modern twist.
Other stories explore the art of seal carving and porcelain painting.
1. The ancient craft of seal carving
Man Wa Lane is an alley in one of Hong Kong’s oldest neighbourhoods, Sheung Wan. A portion of it, nicknamed “Chop Alley”, has been the home of Chinese stone seal makers since the 1930s.
More than a dozen stalls specialising in stamps still line the alley, but the know-how involved in this ancient craft is fading, and only a few of the owners still make stone seals by hand.
Seal carving dates back to the Spring and Autumn period in China (770BC-476BC), when the tradition of signing documents with personalised engraved stone seals dipped in vermilion cinnabar paste began.