Santa Claus

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1881 illustration by Thomas Nast who, with Clement Clarke Moore, helped to create the modern image of Santa Claus

The modern portrayal of Santa Claus frequently depicts him listening to the Christmas wishes of young children.

Santa Claus, also known as Saint Nicholas, Sinterklaas, Father Christmas, Kris Kringle or simply "Santa", is a legendary figure who, in many Western cultures, brings gifts to the homes of the good children during the late evening and overnight hours of Christmas Eve, December 24^[1] or on his Feast Day, December 6 (Saint Nicholas Day).^[2] The legend may have part of its basis in hagiographical tales concerning the historical figure of gift giver Saint Nicholas. A nearly identical story is attributed by Greek and Byzantine folklore to Basil of Caesarea. Basil's feast day on January 1 is considered the time of exchanging gifts in Greece.

While Saint Nicholas was originally portrayed wearing bishop's robes, today Santa Claus is generally depicted as a plump, jolly, white-bearded man wearing a red coat with white collar and cuffs, white-cuffed red trousers, and black leather belt and boots. This image became popular in the United States and Canada in the 19th century due to the significant influence of caricaturist and political cartoonist Thomas Nast.^[3][4][5] This image has been maintained and reinforced through song, radio, television, and films. In the United Kingdom and Europe, he is often depicted in a manner identical to the American Santa Claus, but he is commonly called Father Christmas.

One legend^[which?] associated with Santa Claus says that he lives in the far north, in a land of perpetual snow. The American version of Santa Claus says that he lives at his house on the North Pole, while Father Christmas is often said^{[by whom?]} to reside in the mountains of Korvatunturi in Lapland Province, Finland. Santa Claus lives with his wife Mrs. Claus, a countless number of magical elves, and eight or nine flying reindeer. Another legend^[which?] of Santa Claus says that he makes a list of children throughout the world, categorizing them according to their behavior ("naughty" or "nice") and that he delivers presents, including toys, candy, and other gifts to all of the good boys and girls in the world, and sometimes coal to the naughty children, on the single night of Christmas Eve. He accomplishes this feat with the aid of the elves who make the toys in the workshop and the reindeer who pull his sleigh.^[6][7]

Origins

Early Christian origins

A medieval fresco depicting St Nicholas from the Boyana Church, near Sofia, Bulgaria

Saint Nicholas of Myra is the primary inspiration for the Christian figure of Santa Claus. He was a 4th-century Greek Christian bishop of Myra (now Demre) in Lycia, a province of the Byzantine Anatolia, now in Turkey. Nicholas was famous for his generous gifts to the poor, in particular presenting the three impoverished daughters of a pious Christian with dowries so that they would not have to become prostitutes.^[8] He was very religious from an early age and devoted his life entirely to Christianity. In Europe (more precisely the Netherlands, Belgium, Austria and Germany) he is still portrayed as a bearded bishop in canonical robes. In 1087, the Italian city of Bari, wanting to enter the profitable pilgrimage industry of the times, mounted an expedition to locate the tomb of the Christian Saint and procure his remains. The reliquary of St. Nicholas was desecrated by Italian sailors and the spoils, including his relics, taken to Bari^[9][10] where they are kept to this day. A basilica was constructed the same year to store the loot and the area became a pilgrimage site for the devout, thus justifying the economic cost of the expedition. Irish historians say that his remains were moved on again from Italy to Jerpoint Abbey in County Kilkenny, where his grave can still be seen.^[11] Saint Nicholas was later claimed as a patron saint of many diverse groups, from archers, sailor, and children to pawnbrokers.^[8][12] He is also the patron saint of both Amsterdam and Moscow.^[13]

The History of Constitution of the Republic of China

source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constitution_of_the_Republic_of_China

The Provisional Constitution of the Republic of China was drawn up in March 1912 and formed the basic government document of the Republic of China until 1928. It provided a Western-style parliamentary system headed by the weak president. However, the system was quickly usurped when Song Jiaoren, who as leader of the KMT was to become prime minister following the party's victory in the 1913 elections, was assassinated under the orders of President Yuan Shikai. Yuan regularly flouted the elected assembly and assumed dictorial powers. Upon his death, China disintegrated into warlordism and the Beiyang Government operating under the Constitution remained in the hands of various military leaders.

The Kuomintang under Chiang Kai-shek established control over much of China by 1928. The Nationalist Government promulgated the Provisional Constitution of the Political Tutelage Period in 1931. Under this document, the government operated under a one-party system with supreme power held by the National Congress of the Kuomintang and effective power held by the Central Executive Committee of the Kuomintang. In Leninist fashion, it permitted a system of dual party-state committees to form the basis of government. The KMT intended this Constitution to remain in effect until the country had been pacified and the people sufficiently "educated" to participate in democratic government.

Seventeen Taiwanese National Assembly delegates selected by the ROC government in a photo with then President Chiang Kai-shek in 1946

The current Constitution traces its origins to the end of the Second Sino-Japanese War when the impending outbreak of the Chinese Civil War pressured Chiang Kai-shek into enacting a democratic Constitution that would put an end to KMT party rule. The Chinese Communists sought a coalition, made of one-third Nationalists, one-third Communists, and one-third of members from other parties, to form a coalition government that would draft the new Constitution. However, Chiang Kai-shek refused to relinquish to hold on power and insisted on having the Nationalist Government draft the Constitution and then holding nation-wide elections in which the Communists would be permitted to participate. Unable to resolve the impasse, the KMT-drafted Constitution was adopted by the National Assembly on December 25, 1946, promulgated by the National Government on January 1, 1947, and went into effect on December 25, 1947. The Constitution was seen as the third and final stage of Kuomintang reconstruction of China. The Communists, though invited to the convention that drafted it, boycotted and declared after the ratification that not only would it not recognize the ROC constitution, but all bills passed by the Nationalist administration would be disregarded as well. Zhou Enlai challenged the legitimacy of the National Assembly in 1947 by accusing KMT hand-picked the members of the National Assembly 10 years earlier and thus could not have legal representativity of the Chinese people.

 Content

The founding of the ROC was centered on the Three Principles of the People (san min zhuyi): Nationalism, Democracy, and People's Livelihood (also translated "Socialism"). "Nationalism" meant standing up to Japanese and European interference, "democracy" represented elected rule modeled after the Diet of Japan, and the "people's livelihood" meant government regulation of the means of production. Another subordinate principle was the "republic of Five Races", which emphasized the harmony of the five major ethnic groups in China (Han, Manchus, Mongols, Tibetans, and Uyghurs), represented by the colored stripes of the original Five-Colored Flag of the Republic. The Five Races Under One Union principle and the five-colored flag were abandoned in 1927.

The Constitution originally established a republic with a National Assembly and five branches of government, named Yuan(院), which are: the Executive Yuan, Legislative Yuan, Judicial Yuan, Examination Yuan, and Control Yuan. In practice, the Examination Yuan and the Control Yuan have become marginal organizations, while the National Assembly was abolished in 2005. Although in practice the government on Taiwan has become a presidential system, the constitution itself is unclear as to whether the system is intended to be presidential or parliamentary and this has led to some deadlock when, as after the 2000 Presidential elections, the legislature and presidency was held by different parties.

 Chinese Major Holidays and Festivals 中國重要節日名稱http://home.lsjh.tp.edu.tw/annie/festivals/Chinese_name.htm

Founding Day of the Republic of China	開國紀念日	January 1
Chinese Lunar New Year	農曆新年	January 1 (Lunar)
Lantern Festival	元宵節	January 15 (Lunar)
Liberty Day	自由日	January 23 Liberty Day
228 Memorial Day	和平紀念日	February 28
Arbor Day	植樹節	March 12
Memorial Day of Dr. Sun Yat-sen's Death	國父逝世   紀念日	March 12
Youth Day	青年節	March 29
Tomb Sweeping Day	民族掃墓節	April 5
Labor Day	勞動節	May 1
Mother's Day	母親節	the second Sunday of  May
Dragon Boat Festival	端午節	May 5 (Lunar)
Father's Day	父親節	August 8
Mid-autumn Festival	中秋節	August 15 (Lunar)
Chinese Valentine's Day	中國情人節   七夕	July 7 (Lunar)
Ghost Festival	中元節	July 15 (Lunar)
Armed Forces Day	軍人節	September 3
Double Ninth Day	重陽節	September 9 (Lunar)
Teacher's Day	教師節	September 28
Double Tenth Day	國慶日	October 10
Taiwan's Retrocession Day	光復節	October 25
Constitution Day	行憲紀念日	December 25