Chinese Traditional Festivals 中国传统节日

China is a large country with 1.3 billion people and boasts a 5,000-year history and glorious culture. Thus, Chinese festivals are old and numerous, embodying Chinese culture and greatly enriching people’s lives. 

Festivals are products of human society. Almost every traditional festival has its own unique origins and customs which reflect the traditional practices and morality of the whole Chinese nation and its people. All these festivals include common elements such as desires for happiness and well-being, warding off misfortune, experiencing a connection between man and heaven, and family reunion. And, of course, festivals are an opportunity for celebration and relaxation.

The formation of traditional festivals is a long process of historical and cultural accumulation in a nation or a state. As a largely agricultural nation, the formation of traditional festivals in China has much to do with agricultural production. Jiechi or the 24 Solar terms, which came into being in the Warring States Period, is a key factor in forming traditional festivals. According to the traditional Chinese calendar, a year is divided into 24 points, which can accurately show seasonal changes and acts as a basic guidance system for agricultural production. 

In China, festival activities also reflect primitive sacrifice, superstitious taboos and earthly life, people’s spirit and religious influence. Sometimes historical figures become the focus of a festival, showing people’s commemoration for them and giving some historical sense to it. People worship Niulang and Zhinu on the Double Seventh Day and Chang'e on the Mid-autumn Day are the manifestations of nature worship. The prevailing of the Bathing festival① reflects the influence of Buddhism.

Most traditional festivals, like The New Year’s Eve, the Lantern Festival, the Dragon Boat Festival, the Double Seventh Festival, and the Double Ninth Festival, took shape during the Qin Dynasty, the first unified and power-centralized dynasty of China and were fixed in the Han Dynasty, a period in Chinese history with its politics steady and economically prosperous. In the most prosperous Tang Dynasty, traditional festivals liberated（释放） themselves from primitive sacrifice, taboos and mystery and became more entertaining. From then on, festive occasions turned more brisk and exciting and more and more folk customs were developed. 

As China is a vast land and has many ethnic groups, different ethnic groups have different festivals in different places. Even at the same festival, they follow different customs. In fact, these traditional festivals have absorbed nourishment from different regions and various ethnic cultures and are a precious cultural heritage for the whole Chinese nation.

The grandest and most celebrated festivals in China are the Spring Festival, the Lantern Festival, Pure Brightness Festival, the Dragon Boat Festival, the Double Seventh Festival, the Mid-Autumn Festival, and the Double Ninth Festival.

                                                     Abridged and revised from

                            http://www.fmprc.gov.cn/ce/ceke/eng/xnyfgk/t182866.htm