What festival is Qixi?

Tanabata is a traditional festival in China, also known as Qiaoqi Festival, Qiaoqi Festival or Seven Sisters's birthday, also known as China Valentine's Day, which falls on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month every year.

On Tanabata, it is said that the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl meet at the Magpie Bridge. Legend is of course beautiful, but according to the records of ancient astronomy, there are indeed two stars, Altair and Vega.

The ancient astronomical calendar took the intersection of these two stars as the day when the sky changed. This day also happens to be the seventh day of the seventh lunar month, which is in line with the very auspicious number considered by ancient metaphysics, so the seventh day of the seventh lunar month is designated as Qixi.

Festival influence

Japan

Influenced by China culture, the Japanese also had the tradition of Valentine's Day in China, which they called "Chinese Valentine's Day". Japanese Valentine's Day in China originated in China, and it is said that it was introduced in Nara era. Since the mid-Nara era, Japanese courts and upper classes have followed the example of Tang Palace, and Chinese Valentine's Day, Nvhong and Qixi poems have become a common practice. It continues the custom and habit of "seeking cleverness", but it has nothing to do with love. Valentine's Day in China was originally on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month. After the Meiji Restoration, Japan abolished the lunar calendar, so Chinese Valentine's Day in Japan is the seventh day of the solar calendar every year.