Traditional Chinese medicine, calligraphy, and martial arts are all hailed as cultural treasures.
Tips
culture
The 'big four' commonly cited as 国粹: 京剧 (Peking opera), 中医 (TCM), 书法 (calligraphy), and 武术 (martial arts) — though the list varies. The word came into vogue around the late Qing as Chinese intellectuals sought what was distinctive in their own civilization.
history
粹 originally meant 'pure, unadulterated' (compare 纯粹 chúncuì). 国粹 was borrowed from a Meiji-era Japanese coinage 国粋 (kokusui) used in cultural-nationalist debates, and entered Chinese around 1900.
