Chinese Festivals

Chinese Festivals | Ghost Festival
Chinese Ghost Festival ~ Let's Burn Money, Offer Food, Talk to Ghosts and Pray!
Chinese Ghost Festival, or Zhong Yuan Jie, is held to placate the spirits of dead ancestors. The whole of the seventh lunar month is said to be a ghostly one, culminating in the festival held on the fifteenth day of the month. Many Chinese people prefer to stay indoors on this evening, as the restless souls of the departed are said to wander about, looking for food and comfort. There's no swimming this month, either, as it causes vulnerability to ghostly intrusion! Image by... I'm Fantastic |...

Chinese Festivals | Tomb Sweeping Day
Tomb Sweeping Day (Qingming Jie) in China is a Family Festival To Honour Ancestors!
Qingming Festival is also known as Tomb-sweeping Day, Pure Brightness Festival, Clear Bright Festival, All Souls Day, Festival for Tending Graves or Grave Sweeping Day. It falls on either April 4th, 5th or 6th, 2 weeks after the vernal equinox, is one of the 24 Chinese Solar Terms, and is a crucial time for Spring ploughing and sowing since temperatures rise and rainfall increases. Not only does this festival have a close association with agriculture, however, it is also a time for rememberin...

Chinese Festivals | Valentines Day
Chinese Valentines Day ~ Let's Carve Melons Then!
Why carve melons? Well, it was traditionally a way to demonstrate the domestic skills of a young woman to any potential suitors! As well as melon carving, they would display samples of fried cookies, embroidery, quilting and other handicraft. More recently, this practice has waned because of the more modern attitude of couples towards shared domestic duties in China. Chinese Valentines Day is also known as "Qixi Festival" (the Night of Sevens), "Double Seventh Festival" or "Magpie Festival". ...

Chinese Festivals | Double 9th Festival
Double Ninth Festival in China ~ Let's Wear Dogwood, Drink Chrysanthemum Wine & Climb Hills!
The Double Ninth Festival falls on the ninth day of the ninth lunar month, hence its name. This time is characterised by people enjoying hill climbing, wearing a spray of Dogwood, appreciating the beauty of Chrysanthemum flowers (and wine made from them) as well as eating multi-layered cakes. Old people are also encouraged to improve their health and happiness by taking part in the festival. Image: turtlemom_nancy | Lens Updated: May 13th, 2012 @ 09:10 pm Beijing time.

Chinese Festivals | National Day
China's National Day Celebrates the Founding of the People's Republic of China!
On October 1st, 1949, the Chinese Communist Party, under Chairman Mao's leadership declared victory in the war against Chiang Kai Shek's Nationalists. Mao raised the flag of the newly declared People's Republic of China in front of around 300,000 soldiers and citizens in a ceremony in Tiananmen Square. In modern China, the people are just as patriotic today as in any other country. At the National Party Plenary meeting held in May 1999, the Chinese government declared a one week holiday, as ...

Chinese Festivals | Lantern Festival
Lantern Festival is One of Many Chinese Festivals
With all the Chinese Festivals on the yearly calendar, it's a wonder there's any work done here. Lantern Festival marks the end of New Year festivities and is colourful and noisy, with bright red lanterns, fireworks, garlands and great food. The Lantern Festival is known in China as Shang Yuan Festival or Yuan Xiao Jie. Some Chinese refer to it as Little New Year as it marks the end of the Spring Festival (Chinese New Year). Lantern Festival falls on the 15th day of the first lunar month, and...