What is Dragon Boat Festival

The Chinese holiday that we know as Dragon Boat Festival actually goes by a number of different names, including Duānwŭ Festival in Mandarin and Tuen Ng Festival in Cantonese (端午节, both literally meaning “Opening the Seventh”), Zhōngxiào Festival (忠孝节, commemorating filial piety), and Double Fifth Festival (重五节, chóngwŭ).

That last name refers to the fact that the festival falls on the 5^th day of the 5^th month of the traditional Chinese lunar calendar. This means that the date of the festival according to the Gregorian calendar moves around from year to year: in 2016 it fell on June 9 and in 2017 it falls on May 30. The festival is marked with a public holiday in China, which this year lasts from May 28-30. Dragon Boat is not as popular a public holiday as, say, Golden Week in October but you may still find that tourist sights are more crowded than usual during the holiday.

As with most Chinese festivals, the origins of Dragon Boat festival have become hazy over the years but the most popular story is that the festival commemorates the death of the ancient Chu poet Qu Yuan (340-278 BC). Qu opposed an alliance between the state of Chu and powerful state of Qin and was banished for speaking out. He spent many years in isolation writing poetry and eventually committed suicide by throwing himself in the Miluo River (in modern day Hunan province) when he heard that the Qin had overthrown the Chu capital.

The circumstances of Qu’s untimely demise also provide the history behind two of the most popular Dragon Boat traditions: eating zòngzi (粽子, sticky rice dumplings) and racing dragon boats. The story goes that when the people heard that Qu had thrown himself in the river they raced out in their boats to save him (hence, dragon boat racing) and when they couldn’t find him they threw sticky rice dumplings into the river so that the fish would eat them instead of Qu’s body.

Dragon Boats were traditionally made in Guangdong province and today the practice of dragon boat racing is still substantially more popular in southern China – it is rare to see dragon boat races in Beijing during the eponymous festival, for example. Most dragon boats have 22 crewmembers, including 20 paddlers, a drummer, and a sweep. If you are in Hong Kong during the festival, you may see people taking part in races between competing villages.

Zongzi, on the other hand, are popular throughout China. These sticky treats consist of glutinous rice stuffed with different fillings and wrapped in a large flat leaf such as bamboo, reed or lotus. The fillings vary by region. In the north of China, they tend to be sweet, featuring ingredients such as red bean paste or taro. In the south of China, they tend to be savory, with a wide range of fillings including pork belly, chicken, salted duck egg yolks, and Chinese sausage.

Happy Dragon Boat Festival from The China Guide team! ■