When is Dragon Boat Festival in 2025
2025 Dragon Boat Festival Holiday start from May 31 (Friday) to June 2 (Sunday).Dragon Boat Festival is the 5th day of the 5th lunar month, but chances are you might not be so familiar with the lunar calendar, so let’s refer to the Gregorian Calendar:
2025 WS MOLD Dragon Boat Festival Holiday Notice
Dear customers and partners:
On the occasion of the Chinese traditional festival – Dragon Boat Festival, according to the national statutory holiday arrangement, our company will be closed 3 days, and resume work on June 3 (Monday). During the holiday, the customer service mailbox (sophie@wsmcmold.com) will arrange personnel to take turns on duty. For emergency matters, please contact: +86-13456489912. Thank you for your understanding and support!
On the 5th day of the 5th month of the lunar calendar, Chinese people celebrate the Dragon Boat Festival 端午节(duānwǔ jié).
During this holiday people commemorate the life and the death of the famous Chinese poet Qu Yuan.
Who is Qu Yuan?
Qu Yuan was a minister of the Chu State during the Warring States Period and the first great patriotic poet in the history of Chinese literature. He committed suicide by jumping into the Miluo River on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month because his political ideals were shattered. Upon hearing the news, local people rowed boats to salvage his body and threw rice balls, eggs and other food into the river to prevent fish and shrimp from eating Qu Yuan’s body. Later, this custom gradually evolved into the tradition of dragon boat racing and eating zongzi.
However, the Dragon Boat Festival is not only related to Qu Yuan. In earlier historical records, the Dragon Boat Festival was actually a dragon totem sacrificial festival in the Wuyue region in southern China (now Jiangsu and Zhejiang) in ancient times. Later, with the integration of northern and southern cultures, Qu Yuan’s legend was combined with the Dragon Boat Festival, giving the festival a deeper cultural connotation.
Exploring the Cultural Charm of Chinese Traditional Festivals
The Dragon Boat Festival, also known as the Duanyang Festival, Dragon Boat Festival, Double Fifth Festival, etc., is one of the four major traditional festivals in China (Spring Festival, Qingming Festival, Dragon Boat Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival), with a history of more than 2,000 years. In 2009, UNESCO officially included the Dragon Boat Festival in the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, indicating that this festival not only belongs to China, but has also become a treasure of world culture.
Other historical origins of Dragon Boat Festival
The connection between Qu Yuan’s suicide and the Dragon Boat Festival,however,there has some other historical origins:
- Commemorating Wu Zixu: In the Jiangsu and Zhejiang regions, the Dragon Boat Festival is also believed to be related to Wu Zixu, a famous general of the Wu State during the Spring and Autumn Period. Wu Zixu was sentenced to death by King Fuchai of Wu for his advice, and his body was thrown into the river. Later generations commemorated him on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month.
- Commemorating Cao E: In the Eastern Han Dynasty, the filial daughter Cao E jumped into the river to find her father after her father drowned. Five days later, she floated up with her father’s body. She was regarded as a model of filial piety by later generations, and some regions would commemorate her on the Dragon Boat Festival.
- Summer Solstice Festival and Avoiding Evil in the Evil Month: In the pre-Qin period, the fifth day of the fifth lunar month was regarded as an “evil month and evil day”. People would hang mugwort and wear sachets to drive away evil spirits and avoid epidemics. This custom is still popular among the people.
Customs of the Dragon Boat Festival
Eat Rice Dumplings(Zongzi) - Dragon Boat Festival on the Tip of the Tongue
Zongzi is the most representative food of the Dragon Boat Festival, and its history can be traced back to the Spring and Autumn Period. The original Zongzi was made of millet wrapped in cattail leaves (茭白叶), called “角黍”. In the Jin Dynasty, Zongzi gradually evolved into wrapping glutinous rice with bamboo leaves or reed leaves, and adding fillings such as red dates, bean paste, and bacon, forming the flavor difference of “salty in the south and sweet in the north”.
- Northern Zongzi: mainly sweet Zongzi, common bean paste and candied dates fillings, dipped in white sugar for consumption.
- Southern Zongzi: mainly salty Zongzi, such as Jiaxing meat Zongzi and Guangdong salted egg yolk Zongzi, with rich taste.
- Innovative Zongzi: In recent years, new Zongzi such as ice Zongzi, spicy Zongzi, and seafood Zongzi have emerged in an endless stream, showing the modern vitality of traditional food.
Dragon Boat Racing - A Symbol of Passion and Cooperation
Dragon boat racing is one of the most dynamic customs of the Dragon Boat Festival. It is said to have originated from the act of people rowing boats to save Qu Yuan after he jumped into the river, and gradually developed into a competitive sport. Modern dragon boat racing is not only popular in China, but also has become an international event, such as the “International Dragon Boat Federation World Cup”, which attracts fans from all over the world.
Dragon boat racing not only tests teamwork, but also contains the spirit of “being in the same boat”, reflecting the cohesion of the Chinese nation.
Wearing sachets and hanging mugwort - the health protection of ancient wisdom
The ancients believed that May was a “poisonous month” and the fifth day of May was an “evil day” that easily bred diseases. Therefore, many customs for exorcising evil spirits and avoiding epidemics developed during the Dragon Boat Festival:
- Wearing sachets: containing mugwort, realgar, calamus and other herbs, which not only have the effect of fragrant insect repellent, but also imply auspiciousness and peace.
- Hanging mugwort and calamus: The folk proverb says “plant willows on Qingming Festival and mugwort on Dragon Boat Festival”. Every household will hang mugwort and calamus in front of the door to drive away mosquitoes with their special smell.
- Drinking realgar wine: The ancients believed that realgar could drive away snakes and avoid poison, so there was a custom of “drinking realgar wine”, but modern medicine has proved that realgar contains arsenic and is not suitable for drinking, so it has gradually been replaced by other healthy drinks.
Five-color rope and forehead painting - folk art of praying for Naji
- Tie five-color rope: use red, yellow, blue, white and black silk threads to weave a bracelet and wear it on the child’s wrist or ankle, which means to drive away evil and avoid disasters. When the first rain after the Dragon Boat Festival comes, throw it into the river, symbolizing that the disease will flow away with the water.
- Forehead painting: Use realgar wine to draw the word “king” on the child’s forehead, which not only borrows the power of the tiger to ward off evil, but also expresses the blessing for the child’s healthy growth.
The modern significance of the Dragon Boat Festival
Today, the Dragon Boat Festival is not only a simple folk festival, but also an important carrier of Chinese culture.
A warm moment of family reunion
Similar to the Spring Festival and the Mid-Autumn Festival, the Dragon Boat Festival is also a day for family reunion. Making rice dumplings, boiling wormwood water, tying colorful ropes for children… These customs allow busy modern people to feel the warmth of family again.
The embodiment of cultural confidence
As the country attaches importance to traditional culture, the activities of the Dragon Boat Festival are becoming more and more abundant. For example:
- Dragon boat races, Hanfu parades, intangible cultural heritage exhibitions and other activities are held in various places;
- Schools conduct “making zongzi” practical classes to let children experience traditional crafts;
- On social media, “Dragon Boat Festival cultural creation” has become a hot topic, such as the “Dragon Boat Zongzi Gift Box” launched by the Forbidden City.
International Dragon Boat Festival
In the context of globalization, the influence of the Dragon Boat Festival has transcended national borders:
- South Korea, Japan, Vietnam and other East Asian countries also have similar Dragon Boat Festival customs;
- Chinese communities in European and American countries will hold dragon boat races to attract local people to participate;
- During the 2024 Paris Olympics, dragon boat races will appear as a performance event to showcase Chinese traditional culture to the world.
The Dragon Boat Festival is a festival full of stories, food and warmth. It is not only a memory of history, but also a continuation of culture. In this season of fragrant rice dumplings, [Company Name] sincerely wishes everyone:
Happy Dragon Boat Festival and everything goes well!
Welcome everyone to share in the comment area:
What are the customs of the Dragon Boat Festival in your hometown?
Do you like sweet or salty rice dumplings the most?
How do you plan to spend the Dragon Boat Festival this year?
We look forward to experiencing the charm of traditional culture with you!
