Dragon Boat Festival
The Dragon Boat Festival (traditional Chinese: 端午節; simplified Chinese: 端午节; pinyin: Duānwǔ jié) is a traditional Chinese holiday which occurs on the fifth day of the fifth month of the Chinese calendar, which corresponds to late May or June in the Gregorian calendar. The holiday commemorates Qu Yuan who was the beloved prime minister of the southern Chinese state of Chu during the Warring States Period, about 600 B.C. to 200 B.C., and is celebrated by holding dragon boat races and eating sticky rice dumplings called zongzi, which were southern Chinese traditions. Dragon Boat Festival integrates praying for good luck and taking respite from the summer heat.
| Dragon Boat Festival | |
|---|---|
Dragon Boat Festival (18th century) | |
| Observed by | Chinese |
| Type | Cultural |
| Observances | Dragon boat racing, consumption of realgar wine and zongzi |
| Date | Fifth day of the fifth lunar month (May 5th of the Chinese calendar) |
| 2023 date | 22 June |
| 2024 date | 10 June |
| 2025 date | 31 May |
| 2026 date | 19 June |
| Frequency | Annual |
| Related to | Tango no sekku, Dano, Tết Đoan Ngọ, Yukka Nu Hii |
| Chinese name | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Simplified Chinese | 端午节 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 端午節 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Literal meaning | Midyear festival | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Dragon Boat Festival | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 龙船节 / 龙舟节 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 龍船節 / 龍舟節 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Dumpling Festival | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 肉粽节 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 肉糭節 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Literal meaning | Meat zongzi festival | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Portuguese name | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Portuguese | Festividade do Barco-Dragão | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
In September 2009, UNESCO officially approved its inclusion in the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, becoming the first Chinese holiday to be selected.