Mid-Autumn Festival 2016

Mid-Autumn Festival is celebrated on month 8 day 15 of the lunar calendar (in September or
October). Mid-Autumn Festival 2016 is on September 15. To many Chinese, it is still the second
most important festival after Chinese New Year.

What is Mid-Autumn Festival?

To the Chinese, Mid-Autumn Festival means family reunion and peace. The festival is celebrated
when the moon is believed to be the biggest and fullest. To the Chinese, a full moon is a symbol of
prosperity, happiness, and family reunion.

Mid-Autumn Festival Facts

Name in Chinese: Zhongqiujie /jong-chyoh-jyeah/
Importance: the second most important (traditional) Chinese Festival after Chinese New
Year
Date: September or October
Popular food: mooncakes
Celebrations: admiring the full moon, eating mooncakes
Origin: A harvest festival with origins in moon worship.
History: Over 3,000 years
Greetings: The simplest is "Happy Mid-Autumn Festival" ().

How the Chinese Celebrate Mid-Autumn

Many traditional and meaningful celebrations are held in most households in China, and China's
neighbouring countries. The main traditions and celebrations include eating mooncakes, having
dinner with family, gazing at and worshipping the moon, and lighting lanterns.

Why Mid-Autumn Festival is Celebrated and How it Started

Mid-Autumn Festival has a history of over 3,000 years, dating back to moon worship in the Shang
Dynasty (16001046 BC). Its such an important festival that many poems were written about it,
stories and legends about the festival are widespread, and its origins have been guessed at and
explained by generations of Chinese.

Mooncakes the Must-Eat Mid-Autumn Treat

Mooncakes are traditional Chinese pastries eaten to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival. The festival
typically involves much giving, receiving, and eating of mooncakes.
Chinese mooncakes are the traditional dessert/snack of Mid-Autumn Festival. They are round in
shape, like the full harvest moon of Mid-Autumns evening. Up to 10 cm (4 inches) wide and 5 cm
(2 inches) deep, most mooncakes consist of a pastry skin enveloping a sweet, dense filling.
Mooncakes are usually eaten in small wedges, and shared by family members, generally with
Chinese tea.

The Origin of the Mid-Autumn Festival

The Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival or Zhng Qi Ji () is one of Chinas most important
festivals, and a special time for family get-togethers. Lets learn more about the Mid-Autumn
Festivals unique legends and traditions- and of course the tasty moon cakes!
The Mid-Autumn occurs on the 15th day of the eighth lunar month each year (falling in September
or October on our familiar solar calendar). It is a harvest festival, celebrated by people in China,
Taiwan, Vietnam, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, and Singapore. Because this holiday is based on the
lunar calendar, where it falls on the solar calendar varies from year to year.
As the festival is celebrated at the midpoint of the lunar month (also the middle of autumn), it is
called the Mid-Autumn Festival. The Mid-Autumn Festival is also known as the Moon Festival
as it is observed during a bright, full moon.

The Story of the Mid-Autumn Festival

There are many folktales surrounding the Mid-Autumn Festival. Here is a popular version among
Chinese children:
A long time ago in China there were ten suns in the sky. Because of this it was very hot! The
blazing suns dried up the rivers and there was a serious drought. People were running out of water
to drink and the crops in the rice fields were withering. A famous archer, Hu y, was summoned to
shoot down 9 of the suns in the sky. He did it successfully and was rewarded a pill of the
immortality. Hu y went home and gave the precious pill to his wife, Chng, for safekeeping. A
visitor of the archers, however, heard about this pill and wanted to steal it from his wife. As the
visitor was about to steal the pill from her Chng swallowed it. After she took the pill Chng
felt lighter and lighter. Then she started to float. She flew all the way to the moon. When Chng
got to the moon she coughed up the pill and the pill became a rabbit. The rabbit was the only
companion Chng - the Moon Fairy- had on the moon and is named the Jade Rabbit.
When Chinese people talk about the lady in the moon, they are talking about Chng , the Moon
Fairy.

Characters in the Story

The famous archer Hu y
The moon fairy Chng
The jade rabbit Y t

The Mooncakes
Mooncakes are out in the market weeks before the Mid-Autumn Festival. They are a seasonal gift
among friends, family and business partners. Mooncakes are available at bakeries and restaurants.
When you see the mooncakes for sale it is a sign that the Mid-Autumn Festival is coming. There
are various fillings in the mooncakes. The traditional ones have sweet fillings such as red bean
paste, lotus seed paste, and Chinese date paste. You will also see the above flavours with one or
two salty duck egg yolks inside. They are delicious but also high in calories. With the current
awareness on healthy eating we now see smaller sized mooncakes and low calorie fillings of green
tea, mochi, and even fruit.

Favorite Mooncake Fillings

Red bean paste Hng du
Lotus seed paste Lin z ()
Chinese date paste Zo n ()
Egg yolk Dn hung

Did you know there is a legend about the Chinese using mooncakes to deliver secret messages? At
one point the Chinese were ruled by the Mongolians and wanted to overthrow their foreign rulers.
When the Mid-Autumn festival came they inserted secret plans inside their mooncakes. When
these mooncakes were delivered and eaten all the members who received the messages fought
against the Mongolians according to the secret plan. The Chinese successfully overthrew their
Mongolian rulers and established the Ming dynasty (1368-1644 AD).

Family Traditions
Family Reunions
A long time ago in China, fall was the season for harvest and, following that, the time for people
working out of town to return home to be with their families. This tradition of travelling home to
visit family remains to this day. Because of this, the Mid-Autumn Festival is thought of as a time
for family reunion. Family members who work in different cities or provinces go home and enjoy
an abundant family dinner.
After the dinner families will have mooncakes and go outside to appreciate the moon in their yard
or in the park. This is also the time for the children to look at the moon and see if they can see the
shadow of the Moon Fairy or the Jade rabbit. With the landing of the astronauts on the moon we all
know there is no moon fairy but the beautiful, enchanting story of the moon lady still has its charm
in Chinese culture.