Qingming Festival (Qintong Boat Festival)

Name of China's national intangible cultural heritage: Qingming Festival

Applicant: Jiangyan City, Jiangsu Province

Project No.: 450

Project No.: X - 2

Time of publication: 2008 (second batch)

Category: folk customs

Region:

Type: Extension Project

Applicant: Jiangyan City, Jiangsu Province

Protection unit: cultural center of Jiangyan District, Taizhou City

Qingming Festival (Qintong Boat Festival)

Applicant: Jiangyan District, Jiangsu Province

Qintong Boat Festival, also known as "Qingming Festival on water", has a history of more than 800 years. Every year during the Qingming Festival, every family in Qintong Town, Jiangyan City, Jiangsu Province and more than 200 surrounding villages will pay homage to their ancestors. On the second day of the Qingming Festival, each family rowed to the random cemetery to offer sacrifices to the unknown soldiers. Then more than 1000 boats, dragon boats, pole boats, rowing boats and women's boats gathered in Qinhu lake to participate in performances and competitive activities. As many as 100000 people participated in the activities and the audience heard the news. The activity is composed of many links, and its procedures are ship selection, water test, boat laying, sacrifice, going to the party, boat racing, water art performance, sending the first pole, cocktail party, singing night play, etc.

Qintong boat originated in the Southern Song Dynasty. According to historical records, Yue Fei, Zhang Rong and Jia Hu, the famous general of the Southern Song Dynasty, defeated the Jin soldiers many times in Qinhu. Under the fierce battle, the song soldiers suffered heavy casualties. From then on, the local people had to pay homage to the dead soldiers on the second day of the Qingming Festival every year, which gradually evolved into the custom of boat meeting.

Qingming Festival Qintong Boat Festival is a unique water folk activities, which reflects the customs of Lixiahe area. It can be called a dynamic precious historical and cultural heritage, and has the research value of folklore.