As we all know, September 10th is Teachers' Day in China now. But do you know the ancient Chinese Teachers9 Day? It is a festival celebrating the over 2, 000-year tradition of respecting teachers and education in China.
The history of Teachers' Day dates back to the Han Dynasty. According to record, during the Han and Jin dynasties, on August 27 of the lunar calendar each year, the birthday of Confucius （孔子）, the emperor would go to the Confucius' Temple to show great honor to Confucius. He would also worship （敬拜）the great old teachers, and invite royal teachers to dinner. And on that day, teachers enjoyed a day's vacation and were given dried meat as gifts. Besides, the best teachers who were chosen from the whole country would be given 500 liang（两）silver coins each as prizes.
Normally, in ancient times, there was no fixed tuition fee（学费）；the parents paid with money or food. Sometimes calligraphy works, paintings as well as books may be given to the teachers as gifts.
Among all the gift-giving traditions, the first meeting gift was a must. There were many traditions when students met their teachers for the first time. Before they met their teachers, they needed to tidy themselves and get well dressed. Before giving their teachers a they needed to kowtow （磕头）to Confucius' picture and then to their private teachers.
Though the way we celebrate the festivals is different, they share the same meaning to show our thanks and respect to teachers.
