Chinese Festivals and Holidays
The rich and long history and traditional Chinese festivalsconstitute the splendidChinese culture. Most traditional festivals were confirmed during the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BC). In Tang Dynasty which was the most prosperous in ancient Chinese history(AD 618-907), traditional festivals had evolvedfrom primitive sacrifice, taboo and mystery to entertaining for all. From then on, festive occasions became more brisk and exciting, and then more folk customs were developed. China is a country with vast land and many ethnic minorities, different monorities have their festivals created by themselves for some reasons. Even for same festivals, there're different ways to celebrate. Here we introduce some important and common festivals. In fact, these traditional festivals is becoming more colorful for absorbing the interesting parts from different regions, which are aslo the precious cultural heritage for the world's civilization.
Spring Festival
The Spring Festival is the most important festival in China, just like Christmas in the West. People working far away from home will be back for family reunion. The transportation systems will be busy with transfering at this special period for half a month. Airports, railway stations and long-distance bus stations are crowded with returnees.The Spring Festival lasts15days from the 1st to 15th in the first lunar month which is often later for a month than the Gregorian calendar. It originated in the Shang Dynasty (c.1600 BC-c. 1100 BC) when people usually sacrificed abounding food for praying.
Actually the most important day at that time is Spring Festival Eve when all people will have the big dinners with families while enjoying Spring Festival Gala Evening . The Chinese government has stipulated that people are given seven days off for visiting. People will clean their house thoroughly when New Year is approaching. Then they begin to decorate their clean rooms with Spring Festival couplets with highlighting Chinese calligraphy, whose contents show the best wishes and praying of people for good luck at New Year.
Lantern Festival
With a long history dated from early Han Dynasty(206 BC-AD 220), the Lantern Festival is aslo meaningful for people. If you happen to see we are celebrating this festival, that means the Spring Festival will end by then.
The celebration for this festival always begins at night. The night sky is illuminated by colorful fireworks and a variety of lanterns. People make lanterns with different styles and colors for decorating streets. The lion dance, dragon dance and fireworks provide a spectacular backdrop for this happy atmosphere. Lanterns are made of multicolor paper with kinds of patterns such as butterflies, dragons, birds, dragonflies, flowers and so on. People prepare riddles on a piece of paper and post them on the lanterns. Visitors who can get right answers for riddles will be given a little gift. It is very funny.
Qingming Festival
The Qingming(5 April) stands for a climate period for seasonal division in China. Because after this festival, the temperature will rise up and rainfall will increases evidently. It is the best time for farming in April. Now the Qingming Festival is not only a seasonal division for farming any more, it is more a festival of commemoration for the dead relatives.
People will prepare abundant sacrifices in front tombs to express their mourn for their dead relatives. The cemeteries will be full of people on that day for Tomb Sweeping. This festival means a lot for Chinese people. Exactly speaking, the festival is ingrained from past to present for Chinese people
Dragon Boat Festival
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 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. Quyuan as the the Patriot of State Chu, he could not help when the State Qin were aggressing his country. He chose to end his life by drowning. In order to commemorate Quyuan, people hold the Dragon Boat Race on that day every year.
Mid-Autumn Festival
The joyous Mid-Autumn Festival was celebrated on the fifteenth day of the eighth moon, around the time of the autumn equinox. Many referred to it simply as the “Fifteenth of the Eighth Moon”.
This day was also considered as a harvest festival since fruits, vegetables and grain had been harvested by this time and food was abundant. Food offerings were placed on an altar set up in the courtyard. Apples, pears, peaches, grapes, pomegranates, melons, oranges and pomelos might be seen. Special foods for the festival included moon cakes, cooked taro and water caltrope, a type of water chestnut resembling black buffalo horns. Some people insisted that cooked taro be included because at the time of creation, taro was the first food discovered at night in the moonlight. Of all these foods, it could not be omitted from the Mid-Autumn Festival.
Moon Cakes---There is this story about the moon-cake. during the Yuan dynasty (A.D. 1280-1368) China was ruled by the Mongolian people. Leaders from the preceding Sung dynasty (A.D. 960-1280) were unhappy at submitting to the foreign rule, and set how to coordinate the rebellion without being discovered. The leaders of the rebellion, knowing that the Moon Festival was drawing near, ordered the making of special cakes. Backed into each moon cake was a message with the outline of the attack. On the night of the Moon Festival, the rebels successfully attached and overthrew the government. Today, moon cakes are eaten to commemorate this legend and was called the Moon Cake.
For generations, moon cakes have been made with sweet fillings of nuts, mashed red beans, lotus-seed paste or Chinese dates, wrapped in a pastry. Sometimes a cooked egg yolk can be found in the middle of the rich tasting dessert. People compare moon cakes to the plum pudding and fruit cakes which are served in the English holiday seasons.
Nowadays, there are hundreds varieties of moon cakes on sale a month before the arrival of Moon Festival.