top of page

端午习俗

Traditions of Duan Wu

人们如何庆祝端午节？

How Do People Celebrate the Dragon Boat Festival?

中国人有许多用以驱除邪魅、祈求健康的端午习俗，其中最传统的习俗包括赛龙舟、吃粽子、挂艾草、悬菖蒲、饮雄黄酒和佩香囊。如今，许多习俗已渐渐消逝，不可复见。只有在一些偏远的地方，你才能窥见踪影。

​

Chinese people practice various customs thought to dispel disease, and invoke good health.

Some of the most traditional customs include dragon boat racing, eating sticky rice dumplings (zongzi), hanging Chinese mugwort and calamus, drinking realgar wine, and wearing perfume pouches. Now many of the customs are disappearing or no longer observed. You are more likely to find them practiced in rural areas.

1. 吃粽子 Eating Sticky Rice Dumplings

粽子是最具端午节传统意义的美食。端午节的传说与纪念屈原有关，据说为了不让鱼龙吃掉他的尸身，人们会往江中扔糯米团（和粽子差不多），这是一种用糯米包裹着肉、豆子和其他馅料的食物。

​

Zongzi (粽子zòngzi /dzong-dzuh/) are the most traditional Dragon Boat Festival food. Related to Qu Yuan commemoration, the legend says that lumps of rice (not unlike zongzi) were thrown into the river to stop fish eating his drowned body. They are a kind of sticky rice dumpling made of glutinous rice filled with meats, beans, and other fillings.

2. 赛龙舟 Participating In or Attending Dragon Boat Races

赛龙舟是端午节最重要的活动。据传说，人们为了找到爱国诗人屈原（公元前343-278）投江自尽的尸身，竞相划船寻找，而这就是端午节的起源。另外一种说法提到，赛龙舟是一种祭祀龙神或水神的方式，其历史可以追溯到2000多年前。

​

Dragon boat racing is the most important activity of the Dragon Boat Festival. It is said to originate from the legend of people paddling out on boats to seek the body of patriotic poet Qu Yuan (343–278 BC), who drowned himself in a River. There is another explanation. It is believed that dragon boat racing can be traced back to over 2,000 years ago, when it was a way to worship the Dragon God or Water God.

​

龙舟赛的木船都被刻成中国龙的模样，装饰风格也如出一辙。船的大小因地而异，划桨通常需要30至60人合力而为。在比赛中，伴随着鼓声，龙舟队以一种和谐而紧凑的节奏划桨前进。据说，获胜的队伍将在来年收获好运和幸福。香港、广州和杭州拥有最为著名的龙舟竞赛。

​

The wooden boats are shaped and decorated in the form of a Chinese dragon. The boats’ size varies by region and usually need 30–60 people to paddle them. During the races, dragon boat teams paddle harmoniously and hurriedly, accompanied by the sound of beating drums. It is said that the winning team will have good luck and a happy life in the following year. The most famous dragon boat races can be found in Hong Kong, Guangzhou, and Hangzhou. Read more on Dragon Boat Racing.

3. 挂艾草、悬菖蒲 Hanging Chinese Mugwort and Calamus

端午节时处疾病多发的夏初。在中国，人们将艾草入药来治疗各类疾病，它的香味还可以驱赶蚊虫。菖蒲是一种与之功效类似的水生植物。五月初五，人们习惯打扫房间庭院，并将艾草和菖蒲插在门口阻挡疾病、驱瘟辟邪。还有种说法是，挂艾草、悬菖蒲将为家庭带来好运。

​

The Dragon Boat Festival is held at the start of summer when diseases are more prevalent. Mugwort leaves are used medicinally in China to combat such diseases. Their fragrance deters flies and mosquitoes. Calamus is an aquatic plant that has similar effects. On the fifth day of the fifth month, people usually clean their houses, courtyards, and hang mugwort and calamus on doors lintels to discourage diseases. It is also said hanging mugwort and calamus can bring good luck to the family.

4. 饮雄黄酒 Drinking Realgar Wine

古语云：“雄黄善能杀百毒、辟百邪。”雄黄酒是一种由发酵的谷物和雄黄粉（橘黄色砷的硫化物）酿制而成的中国酒。在古代，雄黄被视作可解百毒的药剂，并对驱虫辟邪都有奇效。因此，人人都会在端午节喝上一些雄黄酒。

​

There is an old saying: 'Drinking realgar wine drives diseases and evils away!' Realgar wine is a Chinese alcoholic drink consisting of fermented cereals and powdered realgar (ruby-like arsenic sulphide). In ancient times, people believed that realgar was an antidote for all poisons, and effective for killing insects and driving away evil spirits. So, everyone would drink some realgar wine during the Dragon Boat Festival.

5. 佩香囊 Wearing Perfume Pouches

在端午节来临之前，家长们都会为自己的小孩提前备好香囊。他们采用五颜六色的丝绸缝制小袋子，放入香料或草药，最后再用丝线仔细封口。端午节期间，孩子们总在脖子上佩戴香囊，或者将其系于衣服前端，还可以作装饰点缀之用。香囊承载着为他们辟邪驱瘟的美好愿望。

​

Before Dragon Boat Festival arrives, parents usually prepare perfume pouches for their children. They sew little bags with colorful silk cloth, fill the bags with perfumes or herbal medicines, and then string them shut with silk threads. During Dragon Boat Festival perfume pouches are hung around kids' necks or tied to the front of a garment as an ornament. The perfume pouches are said to protect them from evil. 

bottom of page