Dragon Boat Festival

Name of China's national intangible cultural heritage: Dragon Boat Festival

Applicant: Jinjiang City, Fujian Province

Project No.: 451

Project No.: Ⅹ - 3

Time of publication: 2008 (second batch)

Category: folk customs

Region: Fujian Province

Type: Extension Project

Applicant: Jinjiang City, Fujian Province

Protection unit: Jinjiang Cultural Center

Introduction to the Dragon Boat Festival

Applicant: Jinjiang City, Fujian Province

The Dragon Boat Festival on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month is a traditional Chinese festival, also known as "Chongwu", "Duanwu" and "PuJie". "Duan" has the meaning of "Chu", so "the fifth day of junior high school" is called "Duan five". Jianyin in the first month of the summer (lunar) calendar, according to the order of dizhi, may is just the noon moon. In addition, the ancients often called five days "noon day", so "Duanwu" is also called "Chongwu". The customs of the Dragon Boat Festival spread all over the country, mainly in the majority of the Han nationality areas. Zhuang, Buyi, Dong, Tujia, Gelao and other ethnic minorities also have the customs of the Dragon Boat Festival.

There are many legends about the origin of the Dragon Boat Festival, such as commemorating Qu Yuan's throwing into the river, the taboo of poison day on May 5, Goujian, the king of Yue, training the Navy, commemorating Wu Zixu's throwing into the Qiantang River, Cao E's saving his father and so on.

The main activities of the Dragon Boat Festival include commemorating historical figures, rowing dragon boats, eating zongzi, pasting Dragon Boat symbols, paper cutting, hanging wormwood and Acorus calamus, wearing sachets and bathing in orchid soup. In addition, there are grass fighting, batting, shooting willows and other games. In these activities, some related utensils, products and food were produced, among which dragon boat, zongzi, five poison painting, Acorus calamus, Zhong Kui painting, Zhang Tianshi painting and Qu Yuan painting were the most common.

With the progress of society, the Dragon Boat Festival has gradually developed into a traditional festival with rich content and gained great vitality. It has important reference value in the study of folk custom history. For example, the custom of rowing dragon boat and eating zongzi in the Dragon Boat Festival has been well preserved and developed healthily. In view of this, we should scientifically guide the other forms of cultural expression of the Dragon Boat Festival, so as to make the Festival cultural activities of the broad masses of the people more colorful.

"Shuoluo", also known as "picking Lotus", is a folk activity for people in Anhai Town, Jinjiang City, Fujian Province to eliminate diseases and disasters and pray for well-being. "Long winded" Anhai originated from the ancient folk custom of the Central Plains, which was very popular in the early Qing Dynasty. In the middle and late Qing Dynasty, this activity was closely combined with the dragon totem worship of the Chinese nation, and the time was changed to the fifth day of May every year. Nowadays, shuoluo is well preserved in Anhai Town and still plays an important role in folk life.

When "shuoluo" was held, people carried out the statue of the Dragon King's head, burned incense and worshipped, and walked through the streets. The whole team is led by drunkard men wearing Qingbing hats and holding Longgan Aiqi in their hands. On both sides of the team who play gongs, drums and orchestras are those who carry raw pig feet, straw sandals and urinal wine on their shoulders, those who break gongs by hand, and those who wear black cloth on their heads, red pants in red clothes, fresh flower baskets in hand and embroidered shoes on their feet. At each house, the flagman rushed into the hall, waved the flag and swept it among the beams, chanting "Dragon God picking lotus, prosperity and wealth" and other prayers. After dancing with the flagman, the man disguised as a flower lady presented flowers to the householder, which indicated that the Dragon King God was lucky and lucky. The householder received the flowers and gave a red envelope in return. In addition, on this day, people in Anhai Town will hold activities such as "frying to mend the sky", making rice dumplings and inserting pine wormwood in the door.

The custom of "long winded" has a positive practical significance for activating people's cultural life and promoting cross-strait cultural exchanges. With the acceleration of the pace of modernization, great changes have taken place in the social basis for the survival of this folk custom. Some accomplished folk artists quit the activity because of their old age, and the custom of "long winded" is lack of successors and needs to be protected.