Watch this video to learn more about the legend, as well as traditions and festive foods related to the festival.
The Dragon Boat Festival falls on Thursday this year, which is the fifth day of the fifth month on the Chinese lunar calendar.
There are many legends about the 2,000-year-old festival, but the most famous one is commemorating the death of Qu Yuan, a patriotic poet from the State of Chu during the Warring States Period (475-221 BC).
Qu Yuan is said to have been loyal and patriotic his whole life. When he realized the decline of Chu was beyond recovery, his remorse knowing he could no longer save it grew stronger and stronger. On the fifth day of the fifth lunar month, he threw himself into the river and died for his beloved homeland.
其它关于端午节的精彩视频
《Hello, China》端午节
01
端午节的来历
端午节(the Dragon Boat Festival)，又称重五节，于每年农历五月初五庆祝。这是广泛流传2000多年的民间节日，也是中国最重要的节日之一。端午节当天举行各种庆祝活动，吃粽子和赛龙舟(dragon boat racing)是其中的重要习俗。
The Dragon Boat Festival, also called Double Fifth Festival, is celebrated on May 5th on lunarcalendar. It is a folk festival widely spread with a history of over 2,000 years, and is one of the most important Chinese festivals as well. There are various celebrating activities on that day, among which the customs of eating rice dumplings and dragon boat racing are quite important.
02
端午节习俗
端午节吃什么？
Glutinous rice filled with meat, nuts or bean paste and wrapped in bamboo leaves. It is associated with Dragon Boat Festival with historical meaning.The custom of eating zongzi is now popular in North and South Korea, Japan and Southeast Asian nations.
糯米一般先用肉、坚果或者豆沙馅填充起来，然后再用竹叶包裹起来。这是和端午节的历史意义紧密结合在一起的。吃粽子的习俗，现在已经在朝鲜、韩国、日本和东南亚国家流行开来。
端午节玩什么？
Dragon boat racing is an indispensable part of the festival, held all over the country. As the gun is fired, people will see racers in dragon-shaped canoes pulling the oars harmoniously and hurriedly, accompanied by rapid drums, speeding toward their destination.
赛龙舟是端午节重要的组成部分，在全国上下都会进行。枪声一响，人们就会看到龙舟上的运动员，伴随着快速的鼓点，迅速又整齐划一地划动船桨，冲向终点。
端午节戴什么？
On Dragon Boat Festival, parents also need to dress their children up with a sachet. They first sew little bags with colorful silk cloth, then fill the bags with perfumes or herbal medicines（草药）, and finally string them with silk threads. The sachet will be hung around the neck or tied to the front of a garment as an ornament. They are said to be able to ward off evil.
端午节最有特色的饰物就是香包（sachet）。小孩佩戴香包，传说有避邪驱瘟之意。用含有多种香味的药用植物做成的香包也可以预防疾病。
The sachets (Hsiang Pao in Chinese香包) are very popular with children and they vie(竞争) with each other to collect as many as possible. Children are not the only ones who collect Hsiang Pao. Older people are often given them as a symbol of respect, and they are highly prized because of the intricate(复杂的) and beautiful embroidery(刺绣) that adorns(装饰) them.
端午节小孩佩香囊，不但有避邪驱瘟之意，而且有襟头点缀之风。香囊内藏有朱砂。雄黄。香药， 外包以丝布，清香四溢， 再以五色丝线弦扣成索，作各种不同形状，结成一串，形形色色，玲珑夺目。
端午节挂什么？
Hang branches of moxa and calamus around the doors of their homes display portraits of evil's nemesis, Chung Kuei.
挂艾叶菖蒲和悬钟馗像都是为了驱疾避凶，讨个吉利。
03
端午节词汇
1. Dragon Boat Festival 端午节
2. Dragon boat race 赛龙舟
3. Sticky rice 糯米
4. Wrapped in a piece of leaf / Wrapped in leaves 包在叶子里
5. Salty(美) / Savory(英/澳) 咸的
6. Egg yolk 蛋黄
7. patriotic poet 爱国诗人
8. To commemorate Qu Yuan 为了纪念屈原
9. Lunar calendar 农历
10. Keep up the tradition 保留传统
1
假设你是李华，你的美国笔友Maria对中国的传统节日端午节很感兴趣，希望你给她写信介绍端午节。信中应包括以下几点：
1. 端午节是中国重要的传统节日之一；
2. 端午节的时间是每年的农历五月初五；
3. 人们庆祝端午节是为了纪念中国伟大的诗人屈原；
4. 人们在端午节吃粽子、赛龙舟；
5. 你自己对中华民族传统节日的认识。
Dear Maria,
I'm very happy that you are interested in Chinese culture,especially the festivals.Now let me tell you something about the Dragon Boat Festival.The Dragon Boat Festival,also called the Duanwu Festival ,is celebrated on the fifth day of the fifth month according to the Chinese calendar.People always eat rice dumplings and watch dragon boat races to celebrate it.
The festival is best known for its dragon-boat races,especially in the southern places where there are many rivers and lakes. It’s very popular.
The rice dumpling is made of glutinous rice,meat and so on. You can eat different kinds of rice dumplings.They are very delicious.
And Dragon Boat Festival is for Qu Yuan. He is an honest minister who is said to have committed suicide by drowning himself in a river.
Overall, the Dragon Boat Festival is very interesting!
Your friend
Li Hua
邀请共度端午节
假定你是王明，计划和同学骑自行车去西湖过端午节（the Dragon Boat Festival)。请给外教Lucy写封邮件，邀她一同前往，内容包括：
1. 出发及返回时间；
2. 活动：吃粽子(rice dumpling)、观看龙舟比赛等。
注意：
1.词数100左右；
2.可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯；
3.结语已为你写好。
Dear Lucy,
…
Looking forward to your reply.
Yours,
Wang Ming
Dear Lucy,
I’d like to invite you to join us to cycle to the West Lake next Saturday for the Dragon Boat Festival.
The Dragon Boat Festival is in memory of the death of the famous ancient poet, Qu Yuan. There will be a variety of activities such as eating rice dumplings, throwing rice dumpling into the river and so on. We’ll also spend some fun time together watching the dragon boat race, which will make us experience Chinese traditional culture. We should be back around 6 o’clock in the afternoon.
If you are able to come with us, please let us know and we’ll wait for you at the school gate at 9 in the morning.
Looking forward to your early reply.
Yours,
Wang Ming
端午节的历史与传说
Rap端午背后的故事
01
The Dragon Boat Festival is also called DuanWu，which is celebrated every year on the fifth day of the fifth month according to the lunar calendar. The date changes every year but it is usually celebrated in June. 龙舟节也称“端午”，每年的农历五月初五过端午节。这意味着每年公历的日期会改变但通常都会在六月庆祝。
02
It is a traditional holiday which commemorates the death of Qu Yuan, China's first known poet, who drowned himself when his home state of Chu was overthrown. 这个节日纪念的是中国第一位著名的诗人屈原，他因自己的国家楚国灭亡而投江自尽。
03
According to the legend, people in Chu were moved by Qu Yuan’s death. They rowed boats up and down the river to look for his body, and drop the rice balls into the river to distract fishes’ attention from Qu’s body. 据传说，楚国人被屈原之死感动。他们划着船四处寻找屈原的尸体并且将米饭做成饭团扔进江里以避免他的尸体被鱼吃掉。
04
That’s how the tradition of dragon boat racing and eating Zongzi were started. If you love the Chinese dragon boat or Zongzi, this is definitely the time you should consider coming to China. 这就是端午节龙舟竞赛以及吃粽子的开始。如果您喜爱中国的龙舟或者粽子，您一定要在端午节来到中国。
05
On Dragon Boat Festival, every family cleans up their courtyard or the door and puts wormwood and moxa leaves on the door frame to dispel disease, mosquitoes and evil things. 在端午节的传统里，每家每户会清扫门庭或者大门并且将艾叶菖蒲等草药挂在门框上，以驱走疾病、蚊虫以及邪祟。
06
In some places adults drink Xiong Huang wine (realgar wine) can fend off evil spirits and dispel snakes or rats. 有一些地区，成年人喝雄黄酒（一种药酒）可以抵挡邪祟并且驱赶蛇虫鼠蚁。
07
Parents also need to wear their children with sachets. They first sew little bags with colorful silk cloth, then fill the bags with perfumes or herbal medicines. The sachets are supposed to protect the children from evils. 在端午节，父母们还会给孩子们戴香囊。他们先用颜色鲜艳的布料或绸缎缝制小袋子，然后将香料或者草药装入小袋中做成香囊。香囊可以保护孩子们以避邪祛病。
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