Gifts - Chinese Etiquette

When giving/receiving the gifts

• out of politeness, respectfulness, present/receive the gift with both hands.
• Also refuse it once or twice before accepting it
• When receiving the gift, express gratitude by saying a few kind words
  • 謝謝。(Thank you!)
  • 你想得可真周到！(How thoughtful of you!)
  • 太可愛了！(Oh, how lovely!)
  • 謝謝你想著我。(Thanks for thinking of me.)
  • 你真是太好了。(How kind of you.)
• Do not open the gift in front of the giver immediately/right away, unless requested by the giver themselves.
  • the giver won’t feel disappointed if the reaction to gift is not as positive as they had hoped
  • in situations where someone is given multiple gifts, like a birthday party, it helps protect the feelings of those who gave more modest gifts

Gift refusals

• As receiver: Out of politeness, may refuse it once or twice, to not appear overly greedy. (you should)
• As giver: if someone waves away(declines) it, try offering again, but take the hint if they continue to decline it
• As giver: pay attention that your gift is not too expensive, as the receiver may feel uncomfortable/embarrassed in accepting your gifts.
• As giver: especially, many workplaces/companies have rules at which gifts may be counted as bribery.

Gift small items from home/local country.

• Buy locally made ones, avoid "Made in China"
• make it special and iconic for the receiver

Avoid taboo gifts

• Usually because of similar pronunciations:
• shoes (鞋 xié) is a homophone for 邪 (xié) “evil”
• clock/watch 送鐘 送終
• (扇 shàn) or an umbrella (傘 sǎn), Mandarine & cantonese sound like 散 (sǎn/sàn; to scatter, to part ways).
• The Mandarin phrase for “sharing a pear” (分梨 fēn lí) is a homophone of 分离 (fēnlí)--to separate or part ways.