The Dragon Boat Festival, also known as Duanwu Festival, is a traditional Chinese holiday celebrated on the fifth day of the fifth month of the Chinese lunar calendar, usually in June. This ancient festival, with a history spanning over 2,000 years, is famous for its colorful dragon boat races and rich cultural traditions. The most well-known legend associated with the festival is the story of Qu Yuan, a patriotic poet from the Warring States period, who drowned himself in the Miluo River in protest against government corruption. To honor his memory, locals raced their boats to retrieve his body and threw rice into the river to prevent fish from eating it, which evolved into today's dragon boat races and the tradition of eating zongzi—sticky rice dumplings wrapped in bamboo leaves. Other customs include hanging calamus and wormwood on doors to ward off evil spirits, wearing perfume pouches for protection, and drinking realgar wine believed to detoxify the body. While rooted in Chinese culture, the Dragon Boat Festival is now celebrated worldwide, bringing communities together through shared heritage and vibrant festivities.
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