Traditional Han Chinese Festivals

Spring Festival Old known as New Year's Day, commonly known as New Year's Day, from the first to fifteen days. From 00:00 on the first day of the year, all households set off firecrackers to bid farewell to the old and welcome the new. The day just broke, the countryside women to the well (river) "grab new water". On this day, generally do not visit friends and relatives, do not kill, some people eat fasting. Both urban and rural areas have the habit of putting up spring scrolls and door gods. People go out to meet each other, said "good new year", "congratulations on wealth". From the first day of the New Year, dragon and lion dances are held in the city. The dragon dance is labeled "Auspicious Dragon"; the lion dance is called "Rui Shi". Before the dragon and lion set off to the merchants, large stores to send posters, notification of the dragon and lion team to pay New Year's Eve. Dragon and lion team to the door, the shopkeeper first in the side of a string of firecrackers, to be a big lion back, small lion up front, will be burning firecrackers to the small lion thrown, commonly known as the "burning lion". After burning the lion, martial arts team to perform martial arts, then the head of household in the window of a high-rise stretch out a bamboo pole, hung with a large "Li Yes" together with a lettuce, so that the lion dance people dance while climbing with their own big Penny, or stacked into a ladder, to the top of the lion by the衔取, commonly known as the "grabbing the green! ". Taking down the "Lishui", and set off a string of firecrackers to show that the send-off. There are also into the house lion dance, the name is "sweeping", meaning that the dirty evil sweep away. The annual lion and dragon dance lasts until the Lantern Festival. Young men and women in the countryside go out in groups to watch the Spring Bull Dance and other recreational activities. On the second day of the year, each family got up early in the morning to kill chickens and hot rice dumplings for the gods, called the God of Fortune, the countryside known as the sacrifice, that is, "the beginning of the New Year". Relatives and friends come and go to pay tribute to each other. Generally the younger generation to carry gifts to the elders home to pay tribute to the New Year. Married women are also in this day together with their husbands and children back to the bride's home to celebrate the New Year, the gifts must have a large castrated chicken. Outside the family also prepared rice dumplings, rice cakes, rice flower candy, oil patties and other food back to send, called "send New Year's tea". If the daughter did not give birth to a child, the mother's family must send mushrooms, and congratulations, said: "This year, add a ci mushrooms," (i.e., the birth of a boy). If the bride returns, two sugarcane canes are added to wish the couple a sweet life from the beginning to the end. The seventh day of the Lunar New Year is People's Day, which old people say is the birthday of all people. On the morning of this day, each family fried rice cakes, fried noodles, hot rice dumplings to eat; the evening also kill chickens and drink feast. Countryside in the twelfth and thirteenth of these two days, gathered in the temple to watch the performance of spring exorcism and master play. Lantern Festival on the 15th, the countryside to kill chickens and meat sacrifices to ancestors, the family feast. City lanterns. During the day, there is a "steal green" custom, that is, to steal vegetables in other gardens, especially like to steal green onions, garlic or celery, that eat will be smart and diligent. It is said that if you are caught yelling at someone while stealing greens, the bad luck will be transferred to the person who yelled at you, so the owner of the garden won't say a word even if he sees you.

The Land Birthday Festival On the second day of February, the Han Chinese in the countryside kill chickens and ducks to sacrifice to the head of the fields and to the Fude Ancestral Shrine (i.e., the Land Temple) to pay homage to the Master of the Land. On this day, the Han people in the Shangyao area worship the God of the Land at the outlet of the stream in front of the village to protect the wealth of the village from flowing out. In the city, they usually write on red paper at the foot of their doorsteps, "The God of the Land of the Gate Officials", and worship it as the Land Master.

Ching Ming Festival A few days before and after the Ching Ming Festival, families make five-color glutinous rice and prepare offerings to pay homage to the mountains (i.e., sweeping graves) to pay tribute to their ancestors. Nowadays, people also go to the Martyrs' Memorial Park and Martyrs' Monument to sweep the graves and remember the glorious achievements of the revolutionary martyrs.

Mochi Festival April 8, Yongzhou official language has a folk proverb: April 8, eat "Lasa" (i.e., garbage). According to legend, this day is also the birth of Shennong Medicine King, Shennong tasted a hundred medicines, cure all diseases. So some women in this day to the outskirts of the picking stinking vine, white head, wild Ai and other plants, sugar and rice flour oil patties, the name is to eat "Lasa", said to be able to cure all diseases.

Duanwu Festival The fifth day of the fifth month, also known as "Danyang", "Duanwu", "Duanwu". On this day, each family with reed leaves to glutinous rice wrapped into a ram's horn zongzi, also known as cool zongzi or triangular zongzi. People also made of monkey-shaped or triangular charm-shaped scented pouch with moxa, hanging in the chest of children to prevent disease; some with red velvet silk woven into a small mesh pocket containing a stinking beads (i.e., stinking pills); some of the use of andrographis, stinking yellow, cinnabar and other Chinese medicines wrapped in a small cloth bag, the bag with a variety of red and green velvet embroidered with a variety of animal prints and auspicious characters, known as the bag of scented. Children hanging on the chest of the bag of incense, brought by the elders to the river to watch the dragon boat races. So Nanning has a nursery rhyme: "Tuanzou, Chrysanthemum Garden, Amma back me to see (see) the dragon boat ......" After dinner, each household will use the day from the street to buy back the fragrant bushes, moxa sticks, wine cake fruit leaves, roadside green and other herbs to boil water to take a bath, said to be able to cure skin diseases and go to the They also drank the wine, which they said could detoxify the poison; or they used vermilion powder to dot the children's foreheads, which they said could prevent sores and prickly heat.

June 6 June 6, the countryside, each family with new rice to eat, called "Food Festival". On the sixth day, also killed chickens and boiled meat, to the field to worship Tianzu, praying for a good harvest. People also take home clothes and quilts to the outdoor sun, so the folk have "June 6, sun red and green" proverb.

China Yuan Festival July 14, so the festival is mainly to worship the deceased ancestors, so it is also called the "ghost festival". The festival customs are basically the same as those of the Zhuang.

Mid-Autumn Festival On August 15, friends and relatives, used to give moon cakes; married daughters, also buy moon cakes, pomelo, etc. back to their families. In the evening, the family reunion, in the sky, set up moon cakes, tea, pomelo, peanuts, taro and other food, burning incense to pay homage to the moon god, the Nanning Han people called the moon. Children holding various lanterns, such as Liu Hai play golden toad, monkey (monkey), white rabbit, carp, airplanes, horse lanterns, etc., roaming the streets and alleys, playing for fun. Some children also sour pomelo hollowed out, inserted lit candles, empty pomelo skin carved with four money holes, kicking and rolling in the street to play, called "peeling Lu Lu lamp" (that is, pomelo lamp). Some also use a piece of pomelo skin inserted with candles to those three and four-year-old children dragged to play the "light boat". In the northwestern suburbs of the countryside, unmarried young people in the festival, there are ten sisters or ten brothers to worship custom.

The Chongyang Festival On the ninth day of the ninth month, the Han Chinese have the custom of ascending the heights in company on this day, people wear cornelian cherry, drink chrysanthemum wine, and go to the outskirts of the countryside to fly paper kites, in order to show their feelings.

October 1st Folk worship ancestors of the custom, and cut clothes sent to the ancestral graves incinerated, called "send cold clothes".

The tenth day of the tenth month is considered to be an auspicious day. City people in the morning on this day, love to cook a pot of poplar peaches, mustard **** to eat, in order to pray for the winter is not afraid of cold. The countryside also have to worship the custom of the grave.

Winter Solstice Festival is commonly known as the "winter" or "worship winter festival". Nanning Han people generally have had the custom of the winter solstice festival, so there is a "winter big over the New Year" said. On this day, in addition to making dumplings, each family also prepares three animals to sacrifice to the gods and goddesses of the ancestors, and at night, the family drinks happily.

Zaojun Festival The 23rd (or 24th) of December is said to be the birthday of Zaojun. On this day, Zaojun will go to heaven to report to the Jade Emperor about the people's situation, and the head of the household will offer him with patties and three kinds of wine to make him have a full meal, seal his mouth with patties, and buy a paper horse for him to ride up to heaven, so as to prevent him from talking nonsense in front of the Jade Emperor. On both sides of the paper horse is written a couplet: "Saying good things up in heaven, keeping peace down on earth", hoping that Master Zaojun will say good things for the tenants up in heaven. Then a sacrificial ceremony is held to take back Master Zaojun and shelter the whole family. The festival has always been valued by the people, so the folk have "the world's four spring as the first, the earth five sacrifices Zao as the first" said.

Thirty nights of the year December 30 is the last day of the year, commonly known as "thirty nights of the year". The workers who work outside rushed home before this day to have a big reunion. On this night, each family kills chickens and prepares wine and meat sacrifices to the gods and ancestors, praying for the new year to attract wealth and prosperity, and peace and happiness for the whole family. After the sacrifice, the whole family feast, dishes, which must be a fish, dishes must have leftovers, in order to "year after year," the omen. In the Han family around Shangyao on the outskirts of the city, two sugar canes with heads and tails (with green leaves) are placed in the inner corners of the houses to show that in the new year, the family should have the ambition to be self-reliant and self-improvement. Each family also puts up door gods and spring couplets. The elderly do not sleep that night, known as the "New Year's Eve", the children got the New Year's Eve money, but also with the New Year's Eve, such as eating open wok rice dumplings. On New Year's Day, we have to wrap rice dumplings (meaning that we can win the meritocracy), make powdered rice (meaning great luck) and steam rice cakes (meaning that we can get higher every year). By the time of the son, the family firecrackers, this is called "old and new, welcome the spring to receive the blessing".