Duanwu Jie | Duanwu Festival | Double Fifth | Dragon Boat Festival
The Duanwu Festival is a Chinese traditional and statutory holiday. It is a public holiday in China, where it is called the "Duanwu Jie". In English it is also referred to as "Dragon Boat Festival", after one of the traditional activities for the holiday.
statutory holiday 法定假日 traditional activity 传统活动
The Duanwu Festival occurs on the fifth day of the fifth month of the Chinese calendar, giving rise to the alternative name of Double Fifth. In 2009, this falls on May 28. The focus of the celebrations includes eating zongzi, which are large rice wraps, drinking realgar wine, and racing dragon boats.
Chinese calendar = lunar calendar 农历，阴历
give rise to 导致，引出 alternative name 备选名
zongzi 粽子 a pyramid-shaped dumpling made of glutinous rice wrapped in bamboo or reed leaves
Double Fifth 重五节，重午节
realgar wine 雄黄酒
The festival is best known for its dragon-boat races, especially in the southern provinces where there are many rivers and lakes. This regatta commemorates the death of Qu Yuan , an honest minister who is said to have committed suicide by drowning himself in a river. The dragon-boat races symbolize the many attempts to rescue and recover Qu's body.
regatta 赛舟会 commemorate vt. 纪念
commit suicide 自杀 drown vt.淹死，溺死
symbolize vt.象征，代表
rescue and recover Qu's body 救捞屈原的尸体