Dragon Boat Festival customs in Huangshan City, Anhui Province. Waiting online. 200 points reward. For speed, an additional 50 points will be added for good ones.

The Origin of Zongzi

In 340 BC, Qu Yuan, a patriotic poet and official of the Chu State, faced the pain of subjugation. On May 5th, he threw a large stone into the Miluo River in grief and indignation. In order to prevent fish and shrimp from damaging his body, people put rice in bamboo tubes into the river. From then on, in order to express their respect and memory for Qu Yuan, on this day, people would pack rice in bamboo tubes and throw them into the memorial ceremony. This is the origin of the earliest rice dumplings in my country - "Tong Zong".

Why were moxa leaves, reed leaves, and lotus leaves used to make rice dumplings later? There is such a record in "Ji Xue Ji": During the Jianwu period of the Han Dynasty, people in Changsha dreamed of a man at night, who claimed to be Dr. Sanlu (Qu Yuan's official name) and said to him: "Everything you sacrifice has been destroyed by the dragon in the river." If it is stolen, it can be wrapped in mugwort leaves and tied with five-color silk thread. Jiaolong is most afraid of these two things. "So, people used "moxa leaves to wrap millet" to make "cornered millet". Passed down from generation to generation, it gradually developed into our country's Dragon Boat Festival food.

Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty, after eating Nine-Zi Zong in the palace during the Dragon Boat Festival, Long Yan was overjoyed and full of praise. He happily composed a poem: "Flowers in four seasons are unexpectedly coincident, and Nine-Zi Zong competes for new ones." "Nine-zi Zongzi: It is a kind of Zongzi, which is a series of nine Zongzi, big and small, with the big one on top and the small one on the bottom. They have different shapes and are very beautiful. And the silk threads of nine colors are tied together to form a colorful display. Jiuzi Zongzi is mostly given as a gift to relatives and friends, such as a gift from a mother to her married daughter, a gift from a mother-in-law to a newlywed, etc. Because "Zongzi" is homophonic to "Zhongzi", there is a folk custom that eating "Zongzi" can lead to a son. Therefore, "Nine Sons Zong" is a symbol of many children and many blessings. Wu Manyun, a poet of the Qing Dynasty, also wrote a poem praising the Nine-Size Rice Dumplings: "Wrapped in spring rice, the Nine-Size Rice Dumplings are heavily tied with colorful strands. The green wild rice has faded away and the skin is white. I laugh and say that the cook's lotus root has grown again."< /p>

North and South flavor rice dumplings

Due to different eating habits in different places, rice dumplings have developed northern and southern flavors.

Beijing Zongzi

A representative variety of northern Zongzi, Beijing Zongzi is larger and is oblique square or triangular. At present, most of the products on the market are glutinous rice dumplings. In rural areas, it is still customary to eat rhubarb rice dumplings. Sticky, tough and fragrant, with a unique flavor, Beijing rice dumplings are mostly filled with red dates and bean paste, and a few also use preserved fruit as filling.

Guangdong Zongzi

The representative variety of southern Zongzi, Guangdong Zongzi is the opposite of Beijing Zongzi. It is smaller in size and unique in appearance, with a square front and a sharp corner at the back, like an awl. There are many varieties, in addition to fresh meat rice dumplings and bean paste rice dumplings, there are also egg yolk rice dumplings made with salted egg yolk, as well as assorted rice dumplings with fillings such as diced chicken, duck meat, barbecued pork, mushrooms, and mung beans, which have a better flavor.

Sichuan Zongzi

Sichuan people are addicted to spicy food, so Zongzi can also be divided into sweet and spicy. Sichuan’s spicy Zongzi, due to its exquisite production and complicated craftsmanship, has a unique taste, so it has become a Sichuan favorite through the ages. One of the popular snacks. The preparation method is to first soak the glutinous rice and red beans for 5 to 6 hours, pour out the water, add pepper powder, Sichuan salt, MSG and a little bacon, and wrap it with rice dumpling leaves into four-cornered rice dumplings of about 60 grams each. Eat it after cooking. It is spicy and delicious, with a unique flavor.

Suzhou Zongzi

Suzhou Zongzi is a long and thin square shape, with varieties such as fresh meat, date paste, bean paste, lard and sand, etc. It has the characteristics of exquisite ingredients and fine production. For example, to make zongzi with lard and sand, use the best red adzuki beans. After cooking, peel and filter the sand. Then add multiple times of sugar and an appropriate amount of fat to make the filling. When wrapping, there is also a piece of fat meat in the filling. After cooking, Bright and sweet, oily and fragrant.

Jiaxing Zongzi

Zhejiang Jiaxing Zongzi has a long history and is famous in China. Jiaxing Zongzi is rectangular and comes in varieties such as fresh meat, bean paste, eight-treasure, and chicken rice dumplings. Jiaxing’s Zongzi is best known as “Wufangzhai”, known as the “Jiangnan Zongzi King”. Its rice dumplings are unique in selecting ingredients, making and cooking. The rice should be high-quality white glutinous rice, and the meat should be selected from the hind legs of pigs. After the rice dumplings are cooked, the oil from the fat meat will seep into the rice, making it delicious, fat but not greasy. Many friends at home and abroad know the place name of Jiaxing, Zhejiang after tasting Jiaxing rice dumplings.

Hainan Zongzi

Hainan Zongzi is different from northern Zongzi. It is made of banana leaves and is wrapped in a square cone shape. It weighs about half a kilogram. The glutinous rice contains salted egg yolk, barbecued pork and bacon. , braised chicken wings, etc. When the hot rice dumplings are peeled off, there is the fragrance of plantain and glutinous rice first, and then the strong fragrance of meat and eggs. It has both strong and light aromas and a variety of meat and vegetable flavors, which will whet the appetite of the eaters.

Shandong rice dumplings

Among the many varieties of rice dumplings, the oldest and most senior one is Shandong yellow rice rice dumplings. The glutinous rice dumplings are made of yellow sticky rice and filled with red dates. The product has a unique flavor. When eating, it can be served with white sugar to increase the sweetness according to the diners' habits.

Miluo Zongzi

Miluo Zongzi in Hunan is said to be the birthplace of Zongzi. Miluo Zongzi has always been famous for its many varieties and exquisite production. During the International Dragon Boat Festival, dozens of traditional and newly developed rice dumplings are launched for the first time, and are packaged in exquisite vacuum plastic packaging and cans, which are sterile and hygienic, and are deeply loved by consumers at home and abroad.

Southern Fujian Zongzi

Xiamen and Quanzhou’s roasted pork rice dumplings and alkaline rice dumplings are both famous at home and abroad. The roasted pork rice dumplings are made with exquisite craftsmanship. The glutinous rice must be of the highest quality. The pork must be three-layered and braised until it is fragrant and rotten. Mushrooms, dried shrimps, lotus seeds, braised broth, white sugar, etc. are added. When eaten, it is dipped in minced garlic and mustard. , red chili sauce, radish sour and other condiments, it is sweet, tender and smooth, oily and not greasy. In southern Fujian, "heat" and "burn" have the same meaning. The so-called "roast meat rice dumplings" are rice dumplings that are meant to be eaten while they are hot. Eating them hot has more flavor.

Taiwanese rice dumplings

With a strong southern Fujian flavor, there are many varieties, including white rice rice dumplings, mung bean rice dumplings, barbecued pork rice dumplings, eight-treasure rice dumplings, and roasted pork rice dumplings. Roast pork rice dumplings are the most popular. Its "content" is rich and colorful, including pork, scallops, taro, dried clams, duck eggs, etc., and has become a traditional snack that can be seen all year round. Hsinchu’s “Chengjia Meat Rice Dumplings”, Changhua’s “Meat Rice Dumplings” and Tainan’s “Zaifahao Meat Rice Dumplings” are all famous. Babao Zong is also a representative variety. It has a variety of ingredients. Cut the pork leg, fat, chestnuts (or peanut kernels), dried radish, and squid into cubes respectively. Heat the pot, add minced onions first, and then add the above ingredients. Stir-fry it with wine, soy sauce and sesame oil, mix it with glutinous rice, wrap it and steam it until it's fragrant. The famous singer Teresa Teng became very popular with her song "Roast Meat Zongzi" in Taiwanese, which shows the status of Taiwanese Zongzi in Taiwan's food culture.

In addition, famous rice dumplings include Guizhou’s “sauerkraut rice dumplings”, Xi’an’s “honey cold rice dumplings”, Xiamen’s “roasted pork rice dumplings”, northern Jiangsu’s “salted egg rice dumplings”, and Shanghai’s “salted rice dumplings”. Yunnan's "ham rice dumplings" and so on have their own characteristics.

Dragon Boat Festival customs across the country

[Hebei Province]

Beiping avoids digging wells during the Dragon Boat Festival and often draws water from wells before the festival. It is said that it is to avoid Well poison. Market vendors also sell cherry mulberries during the Dragon Boat Festival. It is said that if you eat cherries and mulberries during the Dragon Boat Festival, you will not eat flies all year round. Each restaurant sells "Five Poison Cake", which is a cake decorated with five kinds of poisonous insect patterns. The married men and women in Luan County give gifts to each other during the Dragon Boat Festival. During the Dragon Boat Festival in Zhao County, local officials will hold a gathering in the south of the city and invite the city's sergeants and officials to have a banquet and compose poems, which is called "Stepping on the Willows".

[Shandong Province]

During the Dragon Boat Festival in Zouping County, everyone needs to drink a glass of wine when they get up early. Legend has it that it can ward off evil spirits. During the Dragon Boat Festival in Rizhao, children are tied with seven-colored threads and have to wear them until it rains for the first time after the festival before taking them off and throwing them into the rain. During the Dragon Boat Festival in Linqing County, boys under the age of seven wear talismans (necklaces made of wheat straw), and girls wear pomegranate flowers. They also wear yellow shoes made by their mother, with five kinds of poisonous insects painted on the shoes with a brush. It means using Qu Yuan's ink to kill five kinds of poisonous insects. Jimo washes his face with dew on the morning of Dragon Boat Festival.

[Shanxi Province]

During the Dragon Boat Festival in Jiezhou, men and women wear mugwort leaves, which is called "removing diseases", while young children tie a hundred ropes around their necks. It is said that this is "to bind Qu Yuan." Dragon". During the Dragon Boat Festival in Xizhou, every village worships the Dragon King and hangs paper in the fields. The Dragon Boat Festival in Huairen County is also known as "Zhumen". During the Dragon Boat Festival in Dingxiang County, students need to give gifts to their teachers. In Lu'an Prefecture, steamed wheat flour dumplings are called "white dumplings" and are given together with rice dumplings as gifts.

[Shaanxi Province]

During the Dragon Boat Festival in Xing'an Prefecture, local officials led their staff to watch the boat race, which was called "stepping on the stones". Xingping County Dragon Boat Festival uses silk to sew small horns of millet, and then sews a small doll on the bottom, which is called "playing doll". In Tongguan County, pu moxa and paper cows are posted on the door during the Dragon Boat Festival, which is called "disease control".

[Gansu Province]

During the Dragon Boat Festival in Jingning Prefecture, roses are picked and pickled with honey. Zhenyuan County presents newlyweds with incense fans, Luoqi, kerchiefs and moxa tigers during the Dragon Boat Festival. The children also invite their father and brothers to a banquet with their teachers, which is called "Festival of Enjoyment". During the Dragon Boat Festival in Zhang County, shepherd boys worship the mountain gods. The firewood mounds are burned before the rooster crows, which is commonly known as "burning the mountains".

[Jiangsu Province]

During the Dragon Boat Festival in Jiading County, whether rich or poor, everyone must buy totoaba (commonly known as catfish) and cook it. There is also a proverb in Yizheng County: "Put your pants on, buy yellow croaker". During the Dragon Boat Festival in Nanjing, every family takes a box of clean water, adds a little realgar, and two goose-eye coins. The whole family uses this water to wash their eyes, which is called "breaking fire eyes". It is said that it can protect the eyes from eye diseases for a year. There is a night dragon boat show in Wujin. At night, small lanterns are hung around the dragon boat to race, and there are flutes and drums singing in harmony.

[Sichuan Province]

Stone pillars have the custom of "coming out of the Dragon Boat Festival". Four people use two bamboo poles to lift a large square table covered with a red carpet. On the blanket, a Taoist priest riding a tiger is woven from bamboo strips. Beating gongs and drums, marching in the streets. In the old days, there was also the custom of "typing" on the Dragon Boat Festival in western Sichuan. On that day, everyone in Chengdu bought plums and threw them up and down under the tower in the southeast corner of the city. Tens of thousands of people gathered to watch. In the 21st year of Guangxu (1895), there was a conflict with foreign missionaries due to throwing Li, and this custom was discontinued. During the Dragon Boat Festival dragon boat races in Leshan, Xinjin and other places, grand commodity fairs are also held.

[Xijiang Province]

Students in rural schools in Tonglu County treat their teachers with etiquette during the Dragon Boat Festival, which they call "clothing silk". Doctors collect medicine at noon. According to legend, the Heavenly Medicine Star appears in the sky on this day.

[Jiangxi Province]

During the Wu Festival in Jianchang Prefecture, Baicao water is used to bathe in order to prevent scabies. Xinchang County drinks it with realgar and cinnabar wine, which is called "eye-opening".

[Hubei Province]

During the Dragon Boat Festival in Huanggang County, Bahe Town welcomes Nuo people, with flower crown tattoos and gold medals to ward off epidemics. The Dragon Boat Festival in Yichang County is particularly popular on May 13th, 14th and 15th. The fifteenth day of the fifth lunar month is also called the "Duanyang Festival". Zongzi is eaten and Pujiu is drunk, just like the Dragon Boat Festival.

[Hunan Province]

During the Dragon Boat Festival in You County, pregnant women are served with flower coins and wine by the rich, while the poor prepare chicken wine and put money in bamboo clips in front of the dragon head in the dragon boat. Pray for a safe delivery. Yuezhou Prefecture races to avoid disasters and illnesses. It is also used as a straw boat to flood, which is called "sending plague".

[Fujian Province]

It is an old custom in Fuzhou during the Dragon Boat Festival that the daughter-in-law presents her parents-in-law with shrouds, shoes and socks, rice dumplings, and fans. In Jianyang County, the fifth day is the day when the king of medicines dry their medicine bags, and everyone makes sauce on this day. During the Dragon Boat Festival in Shanghang County, people use small boats tied with reeds to make dragon shapes and play on the waterside, which is called racing. After the Dragon Boat Festival race in Xianyou County, paper was presented at Huxiao Pond to commemorate the death of Qi Jiguang in the Gui Year of Jiajing. Before the Dragon Boat Festival in Shaowu Prefecture, women use crimson yarn as bags to hold talismans. It is also made of five-color velvet, connected with colorful threads, and tied to the hairpin. The young girl is hung on the back and is called "Dou Niang".

[Guangdong Province]

In Conghua County, people wash their eyes with burning talisman water at noon on the Dragon Boat Festival and then splash it on the road, which is called "sending disaster". During the Dragon Boat Festival in Xinxing County, people from nearby temples advocated the parade of gods and goddesses. The wizard also uses magic water and amulets to drive away evil spirits. During the Dragon Boat Festival in Shicheng County, children fly kites, which is called "flying disaster".

(Taiwan Province)

Taiwan is located in the subtropics. Many of the early immigrants from the mainland were unable to adapt to the climate here. It is common to hear of people dying of miasma and epidemics. Therefore, the Dragon Boat Festival, a festival whose basic spirit is to ward off diseases and avoid epidemics, is particularly important.

The Dragon Boat Festival customs in the pre-Qing Dynasty can be represented by the description in the appendix of volume three of Wang Yingzeng's "Rebuilding Fengshan County Chronicles" (1764): In the early morning of May 5th, a bunch of rice stalks were burned. , smoke it in the corner of the room, send it to the roadside with Chu money, and send mosquitoes away on a famous day. The lintel of the door is hung with mugwort and millet, which is said to be able to avoid mosquitoes and gnats; a branch of banyan tree is said to be old and healthy. They gave each other watermelon and corn millet as gifts. Those who are good at it use money or cloth as a mark in the shallow part of the seaport, and they compete like three fishermen to grab it. The winner sounds gongs and cheers, and fights with dragon boats on the sun. At noon, five knots are tied for the children, one for the left wrist of the male and one for the right wrist of the female, named Sun God Lian.

There is another folk saying that inserting moxa and ficus can make the body strong. As the saying goes, "Planting a banyan tree makes a brave dragon, and planting a moxa tree makes a brave and healthy person." Students in private schools usually send red envelopes to their husbands as a thank you gift during the Dragon Boat Festival, and their husbands give a fan as a gift in return.

Suzuki Seiichiro's "Taiwan's Old Customary Wedding and Funeral Ceremony Mid-year Practices" (1934) records that families during the mourning period do not make rice dumplings during the Dragon Boat Festival, but give them to relatives and friends, which is called "Festival". The bereaved family gives candy as a return gift. Farmers put gold paper called "Fujin" on bamboo poles and insert it between them. It is said that it can prevent damage and achieve a good harvest. In some places, there is a custom of making "salty tea" during the Dragon Boat Festival, which is to pickle perilla leaves and pomegranate leaves with salt. It is said that it can be used as medicinal tea to remove all poisonous gases.

In Jiadong Township, Pingtung County during the Japanese colonial period, there was also the custom of stone fighting on the Dragon Boat Festival. Stone fighting has been popular in the Jiadong area for hundreds of years. Every year, a few days before the Dragon Boat Festival, everyone gears up to prepare for a tough battle. Shizhan is based on villages, organized like an army, and has positions such as chief of staff. The organization is like an army, with positions such as chief of staff. Men throw rocks at the "front line". Women are responsible for transporting stones at the rear. When the situation is full of tears, it often causes casualties. The victorious party can go to the defeated village to eat and drink. The defeated villagers fled. If unfortunately they are captured by the other party, they will be forced to take off their pants and humiliated in public. This peculiar custom is said to ensure good luck throughout the year, so Jiadong people enjoy it. However, because stone fighting often caused serious casualties and was repeatedly banned by local governments, it gradually declined at the end of the Japanese occupation.

During the Dragon Boat Festival, every household still has the custom of drinking "noon water". Wushi water refers to the well water that is pumped in at noon during the Dragon Boat Festival. It is said that the water used to make tea and wine at noon is particularly fragrant, and drinking it raw can even have miraculous effects in curing diseases. There is a proverb that says: "If you wash your eyes at noon, you will be as bright as a crow." Another saying is, "Drink a mouthful of water at noon, and it is best to take tonics for three years." The most legendary midday water comes from the Jianjing on Anvil Mountain in Dajia Town. Legend has it that the well was the place where Zheng Chenggong inserted his sword to pray for the spring. Since then, it has been said that Jiuzhen Mountain is rich in various elixirs and fairy grass. Therefore, the efficacy of the noon water in the Jianjing has been said to be extremely miraculous. Every year during the Dragon Boat Festival, people vying for the noon water next to Jianjing are always so tightly packed that there is no ventilation. It is said that if you look carefully into the well at noon on the Dragon Boat Festival, you can still see the shadow of Zheng Chenggong. And those who see the shadow of the sword will definitely have no disasters this year.

Dragon boat rowing is called "dragon boat" in Taiwan. According to "Folk Customs in Taiwan" Volume 1, No. 6, the Dragon Boat Festival customs in Shilin during the Japanese occupation are as follows: starting from the beginning of May, people first go to the waterside to "welcome the water god." At noon on the fifth day of the lunar month, gongs and drums are beaten and the dragon boat is carried to the river bank. Residents burn incense and worship along the way. As the saying goes: "On May 5th, dragon boats and drums fill the streets." To express welcome, it is called a "solitary boat". If you beat the dragon, you have to "send water to the god" on the tenth day of the lunar month and hold a ceremony of "thanking the river".

In Toudian, Nantun, Taichung, since the mid-Qing Dynasty, there has been a custom of wearing wood to wake up pangolins after the beginning of spring. After the liberation, this custom was held every year during the Duanshi Festival. The Litou Store was the most prosperous area in Taichung during the Qing Dynasty. It is said that this was because the area was located at the Chuan Qijia point. Therefore, local residents put on wooden clogs and stomp on the ground every Dragon Boat Festival, hoping to wake up the pangolins with a loud noise. Currently, this custom has been transformed into a fun competition. A team of four people form a team and race around wearing two long wooden clogs. The sound of Kaka's clogs indeed awakened the nostalgic mood of the residents of Plowshare Store.

In terms of festival food customs, Taiwanese folklore says that eating peaches, eggplants and beans during the Dragon Boat Festival can keep you healthy and grow longer. As the saying goes: "Eat eggplants until they shake, eat beans until you grow old." There are two methods of making Taiwanese rice dumplings: Northern and Southern. The northern method is to soak the rice in water, drain it and stir-fry it with oil until fragrant, and add five spice powder, pepper, soy sauce and other seasonings. The rice is steamed and then wrapped in bamboo leaves and stuffed to make it delicious again. Some people also recommend frying the rice grains in oil until half-cooked, wrapping the fillings in them and steaming them. The southern method is to soak pure white glutinous rice, add meat fillings, wrap it in green bamboo leaves, and boil it until cooked. Because the production methods are different, the zongzi in the north and the south also have different flavors. The rice dumplings from the north have a strong flavor of five-spice pepper, while the meat rice dumplings from the south have a light bamboo leaf flavor, each with its own characteristics. The ingredients include pork, mushrooms, dried shrimps, peanuts, salted egg yolks, shallots, chestnuts, dried oysters, etc. You can add more according to personal preference.

Hakkas in Miaoli area also eat eggplant, long beans, peaches and plums during the Dragon Boat Festival. But the meaning of these foods is different from that of southerners. Eating plums certainly means taking advantage of them, and eating plums symbolizes the reproduction of offspring. Some people also think that it can prevent heatstroke. Eating long beans is to avoid being bitten by snakes (because long beans are shaped like snakes). Eating eggplant can prevent mosquito bites.

Hakka rice dumplings are divided into alkaline rice dumplings and salty rice dumplings. Alkaline rice dumplings are especially used for sacrifices. When celebrating the Dragon Boat Festival, the Hakka people must prepare four pieces of wine, one to worship the Earth God, one to worship Wanshan Ye, and one to worship the nearby big temple. The alkali rice dumplings are an indispensable sacrifice. Salty rice dumplings are divided into two types: rice rice dumplings and rice dumplings (粲) rice dumplings, which are purely used to satisfy cravings.

How much do you know about the nicknames of the Dragon Boat Festival

According to statistics, the name of the Dragon Boat Festival has the most names among all the traditional festivals in my country, with more than 20 names, which can be called the most nicknames of the festival. Such as Dragon Boat Festival, Dragon Boat Festival, Duanyang Festival, Chongwu Festival, Chongwu Festival, Tianzhong Festival, Summer Festival, May Festival, Chang Festival, Pu Festival, Dragon Boat Festival, Bath Orchid Festival, Zongzi Festival and so on.

According to the Records of the Years of Jingchu in the Dragon Boat Festival, because climbing in mid-summer, Shunyang is above, May is midsummer, and its first noon is a day when the weather is good when climbing in Shunyang. , so the fifth day of May is called the "Duan Yang Festival".

Chongwu Festival is Wu, which belongs to the twelve branches. The fifth month of the lunar calendar is Wu month. Wu and Wu have the same pronunciation, and Wu and Wu are the same. Therefore, the Dragon Boat Festival is also called "Chongwu Festival" or "Chongwu Festival". In some places it is also called "May Day".

Tianzhong Festival The ancients believed that on May 5th, the sun was at the top of the sky, so this day was called "Tianzhong Festival".

Bathing Orchid Festival The Dragon Boat Festival falls in midsummer, a season when skin diseases are common. It was a custom among the ancients to bathe in orchid soup to remove decontamination. "Dadaili" of the Han Dynasty says: "Bath in orchid soup at noon."

Zongjie Festival When the ancients ate rice dumplings during the Dragon Boat Festival, they had a game of comparing the length of the rice dumpling leaves that each person had untied, with the elder winning, so it is also known as the "Zongdong Festival".

Daughter's Day Ming Shen List "Wanshu Miscellaneous Notes": "Daughter's Day in May, tied with a Dragon Boat Festival rope, wearing mugwort leaves, five poison charms. Wan custom from the first to fifth day of May, decorated little girl, all The married women also return to Ning. "Shen Bangwan's "Miscellaneous Notes" records: "From May 1st to the 5th, every family in Yanjing decorates their little girls and they are all in beautiful condition. , also returned to Ning with a pomegranate hairpin, called Daughter's Day."

Calamus Festival The ancients believed that "Chongwu" was a taboo day, when all five poisons were released. Therefore, the Dragon Boat Festival customs were mostly to drive away poisons, such as hanging calamus, moxa leaves, etc. on the door, so the Dragon Boat Festival Festival is also called "Calamus Festival".