关于端午节的由来，历代学者有着不同的说法，各地也都有着很多传说。我们只能把这些说法罗列出来，供诸君一览。至于哪一种说法更接近真相，还有赖于学者们进一步考证。On the origin of the Dragon Boat Festival, the scholars of successive dynasties have always held different opinions, and there are many different sayings in different places. What we can do is only list out these different sayings for you to just have a look. Determining which legend approaches the truth more depends on further research of the texts of relevant scholars.
一说认为端午节是龙的节日。闻一多先生《端午考》考证，端午节是古代吴越民间举行图腾祭的节日，认为端午节实际上是一个龙的节日。Version 1: The Dragon Boat Festival is a festival that originated from the totem worship of dragon. Mr. Wen Yiduo has verified in his work “Climax Test” that the Dragon Boat Festival is a festival that was held by the ancient Wu and Yue people for totem sacrifice. Therefore, he thought that the Dragon Boat Festival actually is the festival of the dragon.
二说认为端午节是纪念楚国爱国诗人屈原逝世。据《续齐谐记》记述：屈原在五月初五投汨罗江而死，楚人哀之，每逢此日，以竹筒盛米，投江祭之。Version 2: The Dragon Boat Festival is celebrated in memory of Qu Yuan, a patriotic poet of Chu Kingdom. According to the record in “Xu Qi Xie Ji”, Qu Yuan committed suicide by throwing himself into the Miluo River on 5th of the 5th month of the Chinese lunar calendar, and the people of Chu Kingdom in great grief held a memorial ceremony for him by throwing the bamboo tubes filled with rice into the river on each 5th of the 5th month of the lunar calendar.
三说是据《礼记》载，端午源于周代的蓄兰沐浴。Version 3: The Dragon Boat Festival, according to “The Book of Rites”, originated from the convention in Zhou Dynasty of bathing in the water added with Cymbidium sinense.
四说认为据东汉时期蔡邕《琴操》中载，端午节系为纪念先贤介子推。Version 4: The Dragon Boat Festival, according to “Qin Cao” written by Cai Yong in the Eastern Han Dynasty, is a festival to commemorate a great man, Jie Zitui.
五说认为宋代高承《事物纪源》刊文，端午源于春秋时期越王勾践于是日操练水军。Version 5: The Dragon Boat Festival, according to “Shi Wu Ji Yuan” complied by Gao Cheng in Song Dynasty, is the day during the Spring and Autumn Period on which the emperor of Yue Kingdom Gou Jian was training his navy.
六说认为梁宗懔《荆州岁时记》转述，端午是为迎“涛神”伍子胥。《后汉书》中也写道：浙江虞巫上祝曹盱，五月初五在曹娥江上婆娑起舞，迎接伍子胥。后来江浙一带百姓每逢端午逆流而上，举行各种仪式，以悼念伍子胥。Version 6: The Dragon Boat Festival, according to “Jing Zhou Sui Shi Ji” by Zong Lin in Liang Dynasty, is a festival for greeting the “God of Waves” Wu Zixu. It was also recorded in the “Book of the Later Han” that Cao Xu was dancing above the Cao’e River (also called Shunjiang River before) for the worship of “God of Waves” Wu Zixu on 5th of the fifth month of lunar calendar. Afterwards, the people in Jiangsu and Zhejiang areas went upstream along the river by boats on every Dragon Boat Festival, and held various ceremonies for mourning Wu Zixu.
七说认为在《道书》中载有五月初五是为祭祀先祖日。Version 7: 5th day of the fifth month of the lunar calendar, according to “Taoist Book”, is the day for ancestor worship.
八说是据《会稽典录》一书记载，端午是为纪念寻父投江而死的曹娥。Version 8: The Dragon Boat Festival, according to “Records of Kuaiji”, is in memory of Cao E, who committed suicide because she failed to find her father’s body.
九说认为端午起源于夏商、周时期的夏至节。其时仲夏之日，万物方盛，夏至日，阴气荫生，恐物不懋，故在五月初五以五色印为门户饰，以惩恶气。Version 9: The Dragon Boat Festival originated from the custom of summer solstice in the ancient Xia, Shang, and Zhou Dynasties. The 5th day of the fifth month of the lunar calendar is during the midsummer when everything is prospering, but on the summer solstice, the Yin energy arises from the dark places, interfering with the development of everything. Therefore, doors and windows are decorated with five-colored silk fabrics, in order to fight against misfortune.
十说是民间有一传说认为，端午源于湖北沔阳沙湖曾有四位豪杰专门劫富济贫，后遭当地官兵突袭围困而于五月初五投江而亡。当地民众万分悲哀，将这一天定为端午节，以示悼念。Version 10: There is a folklore that the Dragon Boat Festival originates from the story of four heroes in Shahu Town, Mianyang, Hubei, who specialized in stealing from the rich and giving to the poor, and who later ended their lives on 5th day of the 5th month of the lunar calendar by throwing themselves into the river because of being struck and trapped by local soldiers. The local people who were in debt were deeply saddened, so they determined to celebrate the Dragon Boat Festival on that day for commemorating the heroes.
在上述这些传说中，端午纪念屈原一说因屈原的爱国主义精神、刚正不阿的人格力量及其诗作的深远影响，秦汉以后由楚地逐渐传遍神州，为人们所认同并相沿迄今。Among these legends, the version about commemorating Qu Yuan was gradually spread across China from Chu Kingdom after Qing and Han Dynasties and became generally accepted by Chinese people, and it was passed down from generation to generation because of Qu Yuan’s spirit of patriotism, marked by integrity and strength of character, as well as the profound influence of his poems.
Category: Chinese customs
Minbao 民报 “People’s News”
The Minbao 民报 "People's News" (this is not an official translation) was the political organ of the Tongmenghui Party 同盟会, the predecessor of the Guomindang 国民党. The newpaper was established in Tōkyō where the first number appeared on November 26, 1905. It was forbidden by the Japanese government in October 1908 with the number 24 was to be distributed secretly through 1910 on, with the number 26 being the last. The editors were Hu Hanmin 胡汉民, Zhang Binglin 章炳麟, and Wang Jingwei 汪精卫. Among the authors were, except the editors, Chen Tianhua 陈天华, Zhu Zhixin 朱执信, Liao Zhongkai 廖忠恺, Song Jiaoren 宋教仁, Huang Kan 黄侃, and many others.
Chinese models：Jiang Peilin 姜培琳
Jiang Peilin 姜培琳 English name: Shirley Born: Aug. 30, 1979 Height: 178CM Measurements: 85/62/88CM
A newborn baby has been allegedly burned to death
A newborn baby has been allegedly burned to death after reportedly left in a faulty incubator in a Chinese hospital. Graphic pictures of the scorched 12-day old infant have been made public after being released on Weibo, China's equivalent of Twitter.据报道，中国一新生儿因医院育儿箱出现故障，温度过高而被烤死。这个12天新生儿被烤焦的尸体照片也发布在微博（中国式推特）上公之于众。
The pictures are so graphic that all the online news sites that have accessed them from the Weibo, have blurred out the most burned areas. News reports claim the child died from an 'horrific accident' at Quanzhou Children’s Hospital in Quanzhou, Fujian province.照片上的画面惨不忍睹，所有网页消息在转载微博照片时大部分都打上了马赛克。新闻报道称这一事件发生在福建省泉州儿童医院，“恐怖事故”造成婴儿死亡。
Beijingcream.com reports the baby was placed in an incubator overnight as a precaution since the tiny tot had a cold, according to relatives.The news service says the child was left overnight in an incubator which had heat pads that were far too hot, 'searing the meat off his back'.Beijingcream.com网站报道，婴儿家属称，孩子出生后有感冒迹象，作为预防措施被置于育儿箱中过夜。但这个育儿箱的加热垫温度过高，甚至“将孩子背部的肉都烤掉了”。
It describes the death as an apparent 'horrific accident'. Hospital staff, including nurses from the ward, have refused to speak to the media.媒体描述该死亡事件是个“恐怖悲剧”。所有医院工作人员，包括病房护士都拒绝接受媒体采访。
According to Chinese news site Guiyang News, the hospital is so far refusing to accept responsibility for the baby's death.中国贵阳新闻网站称，目前医院拒绝对婴儿死亡承担责任。
Prose Romance 唐代传奇小说
Chinese fiction went through marked transformations in the Tang Dynasty (618-907). Although the subject matter was still about spirits and social anecdotes, compared with fiction created in the period of the Wei (220-265), Jin (265-420) and the Northern and Southern Dynasties Period (386-581), the plots became more intricate and complex, the characters more distinctive, the language more ornate, and the structure more expanded. Fiction of the Tang Dynasty was called "prose romances. The emergence of "prose romances" in the Tang Dynasty marked the maturity of the Chinese short story, because they went beyond merely recording anecdotes and became consciously creative literary works by scholars. "Prose romances" of the Tang Dynasty fell into three categories:
Chinese models：Du Juan 杜鹃
Du Juan 杜鹃 English name: Jennifer Born: Sept. 15, 1982 Height: 179CM Measurements: 83/60/89CM
Chinese models：Liu Wen 刘雯
Liu Wen 刘雯 Born: Jan. 27, 1988 Height: 178CM Measurements: 78/58/85CM Liu Wen was born in Yongzhou, Hunan Province, and garnered overnight fame in 2006 when Marie Claire's creative director, Joseph Carle, was inspired when he saw her at a small-sized fashion show in Beijing. Liu, who originally dreamt of becoming a tourist guide, is now a favorite darling on Paris, London, Milan and New York catwalks, and can be found in prestigious fashion magazines and global luxury brands including Calvin Klein and Lane Crawford.
Lantern Show 灯会
正月十五元宵节的灯会始于汉，兴于唐，盛于宋。据周密的《武林旧事》中载，南宋都城临安，最初只是一些大街旁的茶馆，在元宵节时悬挂花灯售卖，如此数年，渐成气候，遂形成了灯市。灯市一般在元宵节前数天开始。为了使灯市热闹起来，京尹每年都派人到灯市上巡视，根据各家商铺所悬挂的花灯数量，配给一定的蜡烛、灯油及费用。到了正月十五，京尹会亲自前往灯市，其随行者会携带一只装满了纸币的口袋，给灯市上的游动小贩发红包，以感谢他们对灯市繁荣所做的贡献，谓之“买市”。On the fifteenth day of the first month of the lunar year Lantern show can be traced back to the Han Dynasty, which rose in the Tang Dynasty and peaked in the Song Dynasty. “Lin’an Reminiscence” of Zhoumi recorded that only some tea houses near the street in Lin’an, capital city of Southern Song Dynasty, hanged festive lanterns for sale during the Lantern Festival. Years later, the phenomenon became popular and the lantern market took shape which started several days in the leading up to the Lantern Festival. In order to enliven the market, local administer dispatched staffers to inspect the market every year and allocated candles, lamp oil and expenditures according to the number of lanterns each shop hanged. On the fifteenth day of the first month, local administer would come to the market in person and his followers would carry a notes pocket and send red packet with money in it to vendors to thank their contribution to growing the lantern market. This is the so-called “buying market”.
为了保证赏灯百姓的安全，地方官员在安保方面也是下足了工夫。每年的灯会期间，坊间的繁华热闹地带，都点有巨烛或松柴作为路灯，有兵卒站在一旁维持秩序。路灯旁边还会押着几个罪犯示众，身上写明此人犯罪的缘由。如偷抢妇女头上的钗环首饰，或者举止不端，趁着人多，在妇女身边挨挨搪搪地耍流氓。其实这些人之前就已犯罪被关押于狱中，将之拿出来顶缸示众，目的是警戒作奸犯科者，尽可能地将罪案扼杀在萌芽状态。Local officials worked hard to ensure the safety of visitors. Huge candles or pipe logs were used as street lamps while soldiers stood aside to maintain order in hustling area of the lantern show. Some criminals were detained near the street lamps with reason of crime stated on the clearly, such as stealing and grabbing jewelries of women on their heads, or acting indecently like a hooligan. As things stand, they were put in prison before the Festival, which was designed to alert criminals and stifle them in the cradle.
南宋的皇帝对灯会也非常支持。每年元宵节的二鼓时分，皇帝就乘着小车，带领宫人到宣德门上观赏鳌山。鳌山是在灯市的中央位置扎盖起的一座如鳌形的高台，上面悬挂有数百盏花灯。皇帝赏灯的时候，京尹会让一批经过挑选，衣着干净、食品卫生的小商贩，或者唱歌动听、舞姿曼妙的艺人，在宣德门外等候。皇帝会宣召这些人到楼上表演，妃嫔内人也纷纷购买商贩制作的零食。由于不了解价格，她们的所费往往要比常人高出数倍，甚至有商贩因此而一夜暴富。Emperor of the Southern Song Dynasty fully supported lantern show. Early in the morning of the Lantern Festival, the Emperor took a trolley and led attendants to Xuande Gate to view Osan. It’s an elevation stand in the shape of turtle in the central area of lantern market with hundreds of festive lanterns hanged. Local administer would select some vendors with clean dress and healthy food, or artisans with melodious songs and graceful dance to wait the Emperor at Xuande Gate. The Emperor would call them to perform on the stage and concubines would purchase snacks offered by vendors. Knowing nothing about the real price, they always spent several times higher than ordinary price and some vendors got rich suddenly because of this.
除此之外，临安的一些大户人家，也在家中的花园水榭中布置各式花灯，并且开门任人游览，还备以酒菜款待，以显示自己的家势昌盛。而那些居于幽坊静巷的小户人家，也在门前挂设数盏五色琉璃泡灯应节，远远看去，恍若仙境。Besides, some rich and influential families in Lin’an also decorated some festive lanterns in their home gardens and pavilions which were opened to the public for sightseeing. They also treated visitors with food and drink to demonstrate their wealth. And those poor families living on quite lanes and alleys also hanged some five-color glaze lights to welcome the Festival, seeming like a fairyland from afar.
相比具有浓重政府色彩的宋代灯会，明朝的灯会，则已演变成了纯粹的市场行为。每年的正月初十日到十六日，各地的客商和巧匠就会云集京城，将自己制作的花灯拿到东安门外迤北大街售卖。在这短短的数天里，不仅是花灯制作工艺的比拼，也是经商实力的比拼。京城靠近灯市的商铺和住房，每年到了灯市开市的时候，租价就会翻番，要比平时贵上数倍，如果不是生意做得特别大的商人，轻易不敢问津。另外，灯的式样和工艺也是新颖繁多，有镶嵌珍玩珠宝的灯，也有从邻国或海外贩回来的灯，引来的观赏者络绎不绝。价格高的灯，一盏就要卖上千两银子。Compared with the lantern show with rich government features in the Song Dynasty, lantern show in the Ming Dynasty evolved into a pure market behavior. From the tenth to the sixteenth day of the first month every year, merchants and artisans from all over the country gathered together at the capital city to sell their products on streets in the north of Dong’an Gate. The short week witnessed the comparison and competition of production techniques and business strength. The shops and lodgings near the lantern market offered several times higher rent during the Lantern Festival. Only big merchants dared to make inquiries. On top of that, the patterns and techniques of lanterns got novel and diversified, including lanterns inlaid with rare curios and jewelries and those imported from neighboring countries, attracting endless visitors. Some even were sold at over 1,000 liang of silver.
明人蒋一葵在《尧山堂外纪》载有一事：明朝年间的元夕灯节，京城有工匠用糯汁烧成琉璃瓶，然后制成花灯，可以贮水养鱼，旁边映衬着烛光，透明可爱。黄岩人王古直花费重金买了一盏在家，爱不释手，终日耍玩。有天一不小心，他将琉璃瓶碰到地上，摔了个粉碎，悲叹道：“吾平生家计在此，今荡尽矣！”明代花灯的精巧程度、价值几何，此说也可作为旁证。As is put in the “Record Outside of Yaoshan Hall” of Jiang Yikui of the Ming Dynasty, during the Lantern Festival in the Ming Dynasty, some craftsman made colored glaze bottle with glutinous extract to produce festival lantern, which can be used in fish culture and with candle light set off, it appeared transparent and lovely. Wang Guzhi of Huang Yan bought one with a large sum of money and fondled it admiringly. Someday, he carelessly bumped the bottle onto the floor and the bottle was broken to pieces. He signed that “my entire family livelihood is destroyed!” This story can be used as a side witness to show the exquisiteness and high value of festive lantern of the Ming Dynasty.
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Chinese models：Lv Yan 吕燕
Lv Yan 吕燕 Born: Oct. 19, 1981 Height: 177CM Measurements: 82/60/89 CM Lv Yan is from a silver miner's family in De'an, Jiangxi Province. Lv began her modeling career in 1999, in which she was spotted by famous stylist Li Dongtian. Lv, with small eyes, a flat nose and a freckled face, is by no means pretty by the Chinese standards. However, the "ugly girl" grew up to become a supermodel on global catwalks. Lv went to Paris in 2000 when she was only 19 and rose to fame. In 2000, Lv won second place at the International Supermodel Pageant, the highest-ever ranking for a Chinese model in an international contest.
Paper-Cutting 剪纸
窗花作为富有民族特色的民间风俗已有上千年的历史。是有着各种颜色、各种图案的民间剪纸艺术品。山西民间的剪纸，尤其是窗花剪纸，充满山西民间的乡土气息，浓郁的乡土风味。什么“喜鹊登梅”、“二龙戏珠”、“孔雀开屏”、“天女散花”以及各种花、卉、虫、鱼、鸟的图案，表示了农民对未来生活寄托的美好希望。Paper-cuts for window decoration are folk artworks with various colors and patterns, which, with distinctive ethnic features, have a history of over 1,000 years. Paper-cuts in Shanxi, especially paper-cuts for window decoration, are full of rich local features typical of Shanxi. Diverse patterns of paper-cuts point to farmer’s beautiful aspiration for future life, such as “magpie on wintersweet”, “two dragons playing with a pearl”, “peacock showing its tail”, “heavenly maids scattering blossoms” and flowers, insects, fishes and birds.
剪纸，与立春这个节令有着密切关系，宋、元以后，剪贴窗花迎春的时间便由立春改为春节，人们用剪纸表达自己庆贺春来人间的欢乐心情。Paper-cuts had a close link with the solar term Beginning of Spring and after the Song and Yuan Dynasties; the time for making paper-cuts for window decoration to welcome spring has changed from Beginning of Spring to Spring Festival when people express their joyful sentiment to celebrate the Festival.
山西农村，窗花的图案是多种多样的，内容是健康、纯洁、朴实而又写实的。当然，也寄托了人们的希望，想象，成为人们表达思想感情的一种方式。In the countryside of Shanxi, the patterns of paper-cuts for window decoration are diversified with healthy, pure, plain yet true-life contents. To be sure, they showcase people’s hope and imagination and become a way to express people’s thought and feelings.
窗花的剪刻形式，一是单色剪刻，多用于大红纸剪纸，应用地区较广。二是套色剪纸，一股用于宫廷、商铺子的大窗或厅堂和门面的窗户。三是浮雕剪纸，流行于甘肃、青海一带，它将剪刻与纸叠工艺融为一体，风格别具。四是彩色窗花，又有染色和衬色之分。染色窗花以河北丰宁、蔚县所出最为出名。先刻后染，光彩明艳，光影效果极佳。衬色窗花以广东佛山所产最为著名，用金箔纸和锡箔纸剪刻出主体纹样，背衬各色彩纸，金碧辉煌、富丽典雅。这种做法叫做“铜衬料”。There are four types of paper-cutting techniques. The first type is single color paper-cuts which are mainly red color paper-cuts and widely used in many areas. The second type is multi-color paper-cuts which are applied to huge windows of royal court and shops or windows of hall and shop front. Third, relief paper-cuts are popular in Gansu and Qinghai which, with exceptional characteristics, integrate cutting with paper stacking techniques. Fourth, color paper-cuts include dyeing and backing paper-cuts, with the first type made in Fengning, Yuxian of Hebei Province the most famous. Dying after cutting provides bright splendor and perfect light effect. Foshan, Guangdong Province produces the most well-known backing paper-cuts. Gold paper and silver paper are used to cut the pattern of main body with colorful paper as the back to reflect magnificence and elegance. The technique is also known as “copper lining”.
山东的窗花多直条，适合该地直棂窗；西北的窗花用“十”字将完整的剪纸分成四大块。为了不影响室内采光，窗花多为阳剪，以求得较多镂空的面积。窗花的外轮廓和窗架之间要求舒密有致、构图格式均衡。为追求清新、亮堂、明快的室内装饰效果，窗花剪刻多用细线造型，达到镂空玲珑的视觉效果。Paper-cuts for window decoration in Shandong Province are mostly strips suitable for local mullioned windows; and those in northwestern China divide the complete paper-cut into four parts with “cross-shaped” character. In order to avoid any impact on interior lighting, paper-cuts are largely overt cuts to get more hollow-cut areas. The outline of paper-cuts and window frame shall have an orderly proportion and even composition. Paper-cuts are mainly made of linear configuration for a fresh, bright and lively interior décor effect and exquisite visual effect.
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