Dragon Boat Festival dun w ji The Chinese

Dragon Boat Festival 端午节 duān wǔ jié

The Chinese Dragon Boat Festival is a significant holiday celebrated in China, and the one with the longest history. Officially falling on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month, the Dragon Boat Festival is also known as Double Fifth Day. While many stories regarding its origin abound, the most popular and widely accepted version regards Qu Yuan, a minister and more importantly a poet during the Warring States Period (475 - 221 BC)

Legend of the Dragon Boat Festival's Origin At the end of the Zhou Dynasty, the area we now know as China had fallen into a state of fragmentation and conflict. While the Zhou dynasty had ruled for several centuries, several other states, originally feudal domains, tried to carve out their own kingdoms. The state of Qin would eventually emerge the victor and unify all of China under one rule for the first time in history.

qū yuán • 屈原Qu Yuan , a renowned poet, served as minister at the court of Chu. A wise and articulate man, he was loved by the common people.

He did much to fight against the rampant corruption that plagued the court-- thereby earning the envy and fear of other officials. Therefore, when he urged the King of Chu to avoid conflict with the Qin Kingdom, the officials pressured the King to have him removed from service. In exile, he travelled, taught and wrote for several years. Hearing that the Chu –his home country had been defeated by the Qin, he fell into despair and threw himself into the Milou River 汨�江 mì luó jiāng.

• As he was so loved by the people, fishermen rushed out in long boats, beating drums to scare the fish away, and throwing zòng zi into the water to feed braver fish so that they would not eat Qu Yuan's body. • 粽子 zòng zi

• zòng zi 粽子 The traditional food for the Dragon Boat Festival, zòng zi is a glutinous rice ball, with a filling, wrapped in bamboo leaves. The fillings can be egg, beans, dates, fruits, sweet potato, walnuts, mushrooms, meat, or a combination of them. They are generally steamed.

Celebration of the Dragon Boat Festival lóng zhōu sài 龙舟赛 龙

The Dragon Boat Festival is celebrated by boat races in the shape of dragons. Competing teams row their boats forward to a drumbeat racing to reach the finish end first.

In May 2009, the Chinese government nominated the festival for inclusion in UNESCO's global "Intangible Cultural Heritage" list. Since 2008, duān wǔ jié 端午� has been a public holiday in China.

五月五是 端阳， wǔ yuè wǔ shì duān yáng 门插艾香满堂， mén chā ài xiāng mǎn táng 吃粽子撒白糖， chī zòng zi sǎ bái táng 龙舟下水喜洋洋。 lóng zhōu xià shuǐ xǐ yáng The rhyme above about the traditions of the Dragon Boat Festival has been popular for a long, long time in China.