端午节 (Duānwǔ Jié)(Fête des Bateaux-Dragons)

The Dragon Boat Festival (Duanwu Jie) falls on the 5th day of the 5th month of the Chinese lunar calendar. In the Gregorian calendar, this typically occurs in June, between late May and late June.

The Dragon Boat Festival is a traditional Chinese holiday commemorating Qu Yuan, a patriotic poet and minister of the state of Chu who drowned himself in protest against corruption. Locals raced dragon boats to try to save him and threw rice dumplings (zongzi) into the water to feed the fish.

The Dragon Boat Festival is celebrated in China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore, Malaysia, and among Chinese diaspora communities worldwide. Dragon boat racing has also become an international sport with events held in many countries.

Yes, the Dragon Boat Festival is a public holiday in China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau. Workers typically receive a day off, and in China it may be combined with surrounding days to create a longer break.

Traditions include dragon boat racing (teams of paddlers race in long, narrow boats decorated with dragon heads), eating zongzi (sticky rice wrapped in bamboo or lotus leaves), hanging herbs such as mugwort and calamus on doors, and drinking realgar wine. Children wear colorful silk strings and aromatic sachets as talismans.