Cover 5 things you may not know about the Dragon Boat Festival (Photo: Samuel Wong/Unsplash)
5 things you may not know about the Dragon Boat Festival (Photo: Samuel Wong/Unsplash)
1 / 1
Apart from dragon boat racing and indulging in rice dumplings, here are some other facts about this traditional Chinese festival
Dragon Boat Festival, also known as duan wu jie, is a traditional Chinese holiday that falls on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month. This year, the festival falls on June 22; while many of us celebrate by enjoying rice dumplings and watching dragon boat races, the festival is much more than that.
The age-old tradition dates back to China’s Warring States era and commemorates the life and death of Qu Yuan. A Chinese scholar, Qu Yuan was a loyal minister of the King of Chu during the third century BCE. After being accused of false charges of conspiracy, he drowned himself by jumping into the river.
As he was well-loved by locals, fishermen started searching for his body by beating their oars against the water. While others would throw cooked rice wrapped in leaves (zong zi) into the water, in hopes of preventing fish from eating his body.
Today, the festival allows us to honour Qu Yuan by participating in dragon boat races and eating rice dumplings. Apart from these well-known practices, there are also various other customs unique to this day.
Below, we share some facts and traditions about the festival which you may not know about.
Read more: Dragon Boat Festival 2023: The best places to get your rice dumpling fix in Singapore
1. The festival is listed in the Unesco intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity
Above (Photo: Getty Images)
(Photo: Getty Images)
1 / 1
The Chinese festival was added to the Unesco intangible Cultural Heritage list in 2009. The addition followed South Korea’s nomination of their Gangneung Danoje festival (one that preserves the folk culture of the Joseon dynasty) as an intangible cultural heritage property. This had sparked an uproar amongst the Chinese and the festival was added four years later.
2. It honours multiple historical figures
Apart from commemorating Qu Yuan, this festival also celebrates various Chinese figures, including Wu Zixu and Cao E. Typically commemorated in the Guizhou province and South China, the former was a loyal advisor to the King, whose body was thrown into the river after his forced suicide. While the latter was a young girl who died while trying to retrieve her father’s body from a river. She is honoured in Northeastern Zhejiang.
3. Hanging of Chinese mugwort leaves
Above Mugwort leaves (Photo: Getty Images)
Mugwort leaves (Photo: Getty Images)
1 / 1
According to Chinese belief, the fifth lunar month is considered an unlucky and poisonous month—and the fifth of the month is especially so. On top of that, the festival has always been held at the start of summer when diseases are more prevalent. As such, many families would hang mugwort leaves outside their doors, in hopes of keeping diseases and evil away. It is also said that hanging these leaves can also bring good luck to the family.
4. Fragrant sachets are worn to ward off evil
Above (Photo: Chinese Embassy in Luxembourg/Facebook)
(Photo: Chinese Embassy in Luxembourg/Facebook)
1 / 1
During the festival, children typically wear fragrant sachets filled with sweet aromatic herbs. Wrapped in silk cloth with exquisite embroidering, these sachets are also said to help ward off evil.
5. Different dishes are eaten during the festival period
Above (Photo: Chinese Embassy in Luxembourg/Facebook)
(Photo: Chinese Embassy in Luxembourg/Facebook)
1 / 1
While rice dumplings are one of the main dishes eaten during the Dragon Boat Festival, various other traditional dishes are also eaten on this day, depending on the region in China. For example, in the Fujian Province, the festival is celebrated by savouring jian dui, a fried round cake made of wheat and rice flour. It is believed that the cake is eaten to help stop the rain during the rainy seasons. While the Nanchang region typically enjoys eating tea eggs during the festival. It’s also usually placed in colourful bags and hung around children’s necks to symbolise good luck.
Topics
Amanda Goh was the former senior writer for Tatler Singapore.
