The Dragon Boat Festival:
The Dragon Boat Festival is an ancient Chinese holiday that falls on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month.The Festival This Year:
The Dragon Boat Festival falls on May 28, 2009. May 28 is a Thursday so some companies are adding an "extension" holiday on Friday, May 29, giving workers a long weekend. This year is the second year for the Festival to be a public holiday. The Chinese government declared it, along with Qing Ming and the Mid-Autumn Festival national holidays at the end of 2007.Symbolism:
Chinese people traditionally believe that ancestors should be honored as their spirits look after the family. It is common for a family to have an altar at home where ancestors’ photos are placed and offerings of food, flowers and incense are given. Honoring ancestors goes on to the actual graveyard where there are many feng shui rules governing the ideal site. For instance, the site should face south.Holiday History:
As with all Chinese holidays, there are differing legends on the holiday's origin. The most romantic goes that during the Warring States Period, a beloved official drowned himself when he heard his side lost an important battle. His people were so upset that they threw food to the fish so that they wouldn't touch his body and raced to recover his body in long, narrow boats (like today's dragon boats).Traditional Activities During the Dragon Boat Festival:
- Race dragon boats or watch the races (symbolizing the people racing to recover the body of the drowned official).
- Eat zongzi, sticky rice with vegetables and meat steamed inside bamboo leaves (symbolizing the food the people fed to the fish to save their beloved official's body).
