China’s statutory holidays include:
New Year (January 1); Spring Festival (Lunar New Year); International Women’s Day (March 8); Arbor Day (March 12 Day); International Labor Day (May 1); China Youth Day (May 4); International Nurses Day (May 12); Children's Day (June 1); Commemoration of the Birth of the Communist Party of China Day (July 1); Chinese People's Liberation Army Army Day (August 1); Teachers' Day (September 10); National Day (October 1); Journalists' Day (November 8).
China’s New Year’s Day:
According to legend, it originated from Zhuan Xu, one of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors, and has a history of more than 3,000 years. The word "New Year's Day" first appeared in the "Book of Jin": "Emperor Zhuan took the first month of Mengxia as the Yuan Dynasty, which is actually the spring of New Year's Day in Zhengshuo". During the Northern and Southern Dynasties, Xiao Ziyun's poem "Jie Ya" in the Southern Dynasty also recorded that "New Year's Day for all four seasons, early spring for longevity".
The major traditional festivals in China include the Spring Festival, Lantern Festival, Qingming Festival, Dragon Boat Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival, etc. In addition, each ethnic minority also retains its own traditional festivals, such as the Water Splashing Festival of the Dai people, the Naadam Festival of the Mongolian people, the Torch Festival of the Yi people, the Danu Festival of the Yao people, the March Street of the Bai people, the Song Fair of the Zhuang people, the Song Fair of the Tibetan people, Tibetan New Year, Wangguo Festival, Miao Flower Dance Festival, etc.
The Spring Festival is the first traditional festival of the year for the Chinese. In the past, the Spring Festival was called "New Year" because according to the lunar calendar that has been used throughout Chinese history, this day falls on the first day of the first lunar month and is the beginning of the new year. According to records, the Chinese people have celebrated the Spring Festival for more than 4,000 years. It was started by Yu and Shun. One day more than 2,000 BC, Shun ascended the throne as emperor and led his men to worship heaven and earth. From then on, people regarded this day as the beginning of the year and the first day of the first lunar month. It is said that this is the origin of the Lunar New Year, which was later called the Spring Festival. After the Revolution of 1911, China adopted the Gregorian calendar, and the Lunar New Year was renamed the "Spring Festival" (approximately between late January and mid-February in the Gregorian calendar).
During the Spring Festival, every family puts up Spring Festival couplets, New Year pictures, and decorates their homes. The night before the Spring Festival is called "New Year's Eve", which is an important moment for family reunion. The whole family gathers together to have a sumptuous "New Year's Eve dinner"; many people stay up all night, which is called "staying up late". The next day, everyone began to go to the homes of relatives and friends to "pay New Year greetings" to each other and wish all the best in the new year. During the Spring Festival, the most common traditional entertainment activities are lion dance, dragon lantern dance, land boat rowing and stilt walking.
The fifteenth day of the first lunar month is the Lantern Festival, also known as the Lantern Festival, Lantern Festival, and Lantern Festival. This is the first full moon night after the Spring Festival. According to legend, Emperor Wen of the Han Dynasty (179 BC - 157 BC), in order to celebrate Zhou Bo's pacification of the Lu rebellion on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, would go out of the palace to play and have fun with the people every night, and designated the fifteenth day of the first lunar month as the Lantern Festival. Sima Qian created the "Taichu Calendar" and listed the Lantern Festival as a major festival. Since the Sui, Tang and Song Dynasties, it has become more prosperous. "Book of Sui Dynasty Music Chronicles" states: "Whenever the first lunar month comes, all nations come to Korea and stay until the 15th day outside Duanmen and inside Jianguo Gate. It stretches for eight miles and is used as a theater." Tens of thousands of singers and dancers participated. It's dark until dawn, and then it's dark. With the changes of society and times, the customs and habits of the Lantern Festival have already undergone major changes, but it is still a traditional Chinese folk festival. During the Lantern Festival, there is the custom of eating Lantern Festival and watching lanterns. Yuanxiao is made of glutinous rice flour and filled with fruit sugar filling. It is round and is a symbol of "reunion". Lantern viewing during the Lantern Festival began in the first century AD and is still popular in various places today. Every Lantern Festival night, many cities hold lantern festivals, displaying various colorful lanterns with novel shapes and various forms; in rural areas, cultural and entertainment activities are held, such as setting off fireworks, walking on stilts, performing dragon lanterns, performing yangko dances, swinging, etc.
The Zhonghe Festival falls on the second day of the second lunar month, commonly known as the day when the dragon raises its head. At this time, around the time of the Waking of Insects, spring returns to the earth and all things revive. Insects, snakes and beasts dormant in the soil or caves will wake up from hibernation. The legendary dragon also wakes up from its slumber, so it is called the dragon raising its head. In ancient times, the dragon was a sacred symbol, so dragons were used to drive away pests. Fumigating insects was popular in the Ming Dynasty. On February 2nd, people would fry the leftover cakes from the New Year's Day sacrifices and use them to smoke beds and kangs, called fumigating insects. In rural areas, people use plant ash to circle their houses, and then circle the water tank in the courtyard to attract the dragon back. Interestingly, most of the food on this day is named after dragons. Eating dumplings is called eating dragon ears, eating spring cakes with dragon scales, and eating noodles is called eating dragon beards. The current "dragon beard noodles" probably got their name from this. Children have their heads shaved on this day, which is called "dragon head shaving". Women still do not sew on this day, it is said to avoid hurting the longan. There is also a saying about lighting the walls of the house with candles, "On February 2, if you shine the light on the beams, scorpions and centipedes will have nowhere to hide." However, this festival has been forgotten by people, but the custom of eating spring pancakes is still there.
Sweeping tombs and worshiping ancestors during the Qingming Festival. Around April 5th is the Qingming Festival. Qingming Festival was also called March Festival in ancient times and has a history of more than 2,000 years. Qingming Festival falls around April 5th in the Gregorian calendar and is one of the twenty-four solar terms. Among the twenty-four solar terms, only Qingming is both a solar term and a festival. Qingming Festival was originally a festival for worshiping ancestors, but now more and more activities are carried out on this day to visit the tombs of martyrs and commemorate the martyrs. During the Qingming Festival, the weather gets warmer and the vegetation grows again. People often go to the countryside for outings, fly kites and enjoy the spring scenery. Therefore, the Qingming Festival is sometimes called the "Outing Festival".
The Dragon Boat Festival mourns the patriotic ancestors. The fifth day of the fifth lunar month is the Dragon Boat Festival, whose real name is "Dragon Boat Festival".
Volume 31 of "Taiping Yulan" quotes "Fengtu Ji" as saying "Midsummer Dragon Boat Festival, Duan, is also the beginning". It is generally believed that it was created in memory of the ancient Chinese poet Qu Yuan. Qu Yuan (approximately 340 BC - 278 BC) was a native of the Chu State during the Warring States Period. Because his political ideals could not be realized and he was unable to save the Chu State from destruction, when the Qin State destroyed Chu, he threw himself into the Miluo River on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month and drowned himself. When the people on the riverside learned about it, they took boats to salvage Qu Yuan's body. In order to commemorate this great patriotic poet, later generations designated this day as the Dragon Boat Festival. During this festival, folk customs include carrying sachets, eating rice dumplings, and racing dragon boats. The sachet represents Qu Yuan's moral character and moral integrity, which will last forever: the rice dumplings were originally used to prevent fish from eating Qu Yuan's body, and later became a festival food; and the dragon boat rowing symbolized rescuing Qu Yuan.
The seventh night of the seventh month of the lunar calendar is called "Qixi". It is the legendary day when the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl meet every year. It was evening, melons and fruits were lying in the garden, and girls tied colorful ribbons and pierced seven-hole needles. It is said that whoever wears it first is lucky. The "Qiao Qiao Festival" is also called the "Girls' Festival" because most girls participate. The Ghost Festival falls on the 15th day of the seventh lunar month. It is the birthday of the legendary local official, so it is also called "Ghost Festival". On this day, Buddhists will set up "Ollambana" basins, offer food to monks, hold sutra chanting rituals, water and land monasteries, and release river lanterns and other religious activities. China first established the "Ollambana Restaurant" around the time of Emperor Wu of Liang Dynasty (the first half of the sixth century). Nowadays, it is rare to set up "Bon Lan" among the people, but the custom of placing river lanterns is still passed down in some areas.
Mid-Autumn Festival and Family Reunion Festival The fifteenth day of the eighth lunar month is the Mid-Autumn Festival, also known as the "Reunion Festival". August 15th falls in autumn, hence the name "Mid-Autumn Festival". The Mid-Autumn Festival originated from the ritual system of ancient emperors worshiping the moon in autumn. Since the Wei, Jin, Tang and Song Dynasties, it has gradually evolved into the custom of admiring the moon. The word "Mid-Autumn Festival" was first seen in the book "Zhou Rites", and it was in the Tang Dynasty that it truly became a national festival. It is said that the formation of this important festival of the Chinese nation is related to the story of "Tang Minghuang sleepwalking in the Moon Palace". In ancient times, people used refined cakes to worship the moon god every Mid-Autumn Festival. After the sacrifice, the whole family shared the cakes to express family reunion and joy. This custom has been passed down to this day.
Climb high to respect the elderly on the Double Ninth Festival. The Double Ninth Festival falls on the ninth day of the ninth lunar month. It is a festival that emerged after the Wei and Jin Dynasties. The names "Double Ninth Festival" and "Double Ninth Festival" originated from the Three Kingdoms era. There are five main traditional customs. The first is to climb high. At this time, the autumn air is crisp and the scenery is pleasant. It is a good season for traveling, which can not only cultivate your taste, but also be beneficial to your health. The second is to insert dogwood, which can repel autumn mosquitoes and eliminate insect pests. The third is to drink and enjoy chrysanthemums. The ninth month of the lunar calendar is when the chrysanthemums are in full bloom. Watching the various autumn chrysanthemums and drinking a few cups of chrysanthemum wine is also a pleasure during the Double Ninth Festival. The fourth is to eat Double Ninth Festival cake. People turn the grain into white, tender and delicious rice cakes, which are called Double Ninth Festival cakes, and "cake" is a homophonic word for "high", so eating it means you can rise higher step by step. The fifth is to carry out activities to respect the elderly. The tradition of respecting the elderly during the Double Ninth Festival has continued from ancient times to the present.
The eighth day of the twelfth lunar month (also known as the twelfth lunar month) is commonly known as Laba. It was originally said that this day was the day when Sakyamuni attained enlightenment, and temples would cook porridge to offer sacrifices to the Buddha. Later, it became a folk custom to show a good harvest. There is such a popular song among the people: "Every year, every family is busy and sacrifices to the Stove King on the 23rd. A table is placed in the middle for offerings, with two plates of sugar on both sides. Black beans, hay, a bowl of water, and a stream of incense is burned in the stove. . The head of the family came over and wished him good luck." It reflects the scene of folk worshiping stoves in the past. Because this day is so lively, some people even think that it is a "rehearsal" for the Lunar New Year, so it is also called the Small New Year.
Although there are now people offering sacrifices to stoves, the Kanto candy sold around the 23rd of the twelfth lunar month every year is still a favorite traditional food.