{"id":16382,"date":"2026-06-19T17:01:55","date_gmt":"2026-06-19T17:01:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=16382"},"modified":"2026-06-19T17:01:55","modified_gmt":"2026-06-19T17:01:55","slug":"dragon-boat-festival-links-modern-china-to-traditions-more-than-2000-years-old","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=16382","title":{"rendered":"Dragon Boat Festival links modern China to traditions more than 2,000 years old"},"content":{"rendered":"

By MAR\u00cdA TERESA HERN\u00c1NDEZ<\/strong><\/p>\n

BEIJING (AP) \u2014 Dragon boat races, lion dances and other festivities marked the Dragon Boat Festival on Friday across mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. The more than 2,000-year-old holiday is best known for its sporting events, but its origins are rooted in ancient beliefs about health, protection and harmony with nature.<\/p>

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\u201cThe fact that this holiday has been preserved for thousands of years shows how much we value our traditional customs,\u201d said Meng Dongmei, a retired resident of Beijing\u2019s Tongzhou district.<\/p>\n

Meng said her family observes the holiday through a variety of traditional customs. They prepare zongzi, the sticky rice dumplings associated with the festival, and children wear five-colored bracelets believed to ward off evil.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe also learned online about a traditional recipe using mugwort leaves, red dates, brown sugar and ginger to boil eggs,\u201d Meng said. \u201cWe heard that it could help ward off illness and keep people healthy throughout the year, so we hope that through this festival our family will enjoy good health.\u201d<\/p>\n

Thousands to gather for boat races<\/h4>\n

Beijing\u2019s 2026 celebrations will continue through the weekend at the capital\u2019s Grand Canal.<\/p>\n

The three-day event features men\u2019s, women\u2019s and mixed dragon boat races over distances of 100, 200 and 500 meters. Teams from Beijing, Tianjin, Hebei, Shanxi and Guangdong will compete throughout the holiday weekend.<\/p>\n

More than 1,000 athletes and 200,000 spectators are expected to gather for the event, organizers said in a press release.<\/p>

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\u201cThe competition helped strengthen our team spirit,\u201d said Li Maoshan, a participant in Friday\u2019s races. \u201cIt also gave us an opportunity to demonstrate the spirit of perseverance and hard work.\u201d<\/p>\n

Beyond the races<\/h4>\n

Among the cultural features during Beijing\u2019s Dragon Boat Festival were demonstrations of Wing Chun martial arts, a market featuring traditional handicrafts and a performance in which dancers mimic the movements of a lion.<\/p>\n

Activities were intended to highlight cultural exchanges between northern and southern China, officials said.<\/p>\n

Friday\u2019s lion dance was presented by a group of performers from Guangdong province in southern China. \u201cWherever there is a festive occasion, you\u2019ll find dragon and lion dances,\u201d said He Weihong, founder of the group. \u201cDragon boat racing and dragon-and-lion dancing are inseparable, as they are both part of our intangible cultural heritage.\u201d<\/p>

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Ancient customs on health and protection<\/h4>\n

The festival\u2019s roots run deeper than sporting competitions. It is widely associated with the ancient poet Qu Yuan, who according to legend drowned himself more than 2,000 years ago.<\/p>\n

Tradition holds that people raced out in boats to search for him and threw rice into the river so fish would not eat his body. That story is often linked to both today\u2019s dragon boat races and the zongzi still prepared by families across China.<\/p>

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