In 2019, the Mid-Autumn Festival will be held on September 13th (Friday). China's public holiday will be from September 13th to 15th.
The Mid-Autumn Festival is also called the Moon Festival or the Mooncake Festival. It traditionally falls on the 15th day of the eighth month in the Chinese lunar calendar, which is in September or early October in the Gregorian calendar.
The Mid-Autumn Festival is celebrated in many East Asian communities. In China, it's a reunion time for families, just like Thanksgiving, while in Vietnam, it's more like a children's day.
The Mid-Autumn Festival is the second most important festival in China after Chinese New Year. Chinese people celebrate it by gathering for dinners and lighting paper lanterns.
Festival Facts
Name in Chinese: 中秋节 Zhōngqiūjié /jong-chyoh-jyeah/ 'middle autumn festival'2019 date: Friday, September 13th. See the Mid-Autumn Festival Dates.
- How it began: moon worship, over 3,000 years
- Must-eat food: moon cakes
- Popular activities: admiring the full moon, eating moon cakes, traveling
- Greetings: The simplest is "Happy Mid-Autumn Festival" (中秋快乐 'Mid-Autumn happy')
How the Chinese Celebrate Mid-Autumn Festival
The common customs of the Mid-Autumn Festival include family members eating dinner together, just like a Thanksgiving dinner, sharing moon cakes, worshiping the moon with gifts, displaying lanterns, and regional activities.In Hong Kong, a unique annual fire dragon show is held in the Tai Hang neighborhood during the Mid-Autumn Festival.
The special Mid-Autumn Festival customs of China's ethnic minorities are also very interesting.
How the Mid-Autumn Festival Is Celebrated in Asian Countries
In many East Asian communities, the Mid-Autumn Festival is widely celebrated. Many interesting activities with unique local features are held.In Singapore, Malaysia, and the Philippines – three countries with many ethnic Chinese citizens– the celebrations are more Chinese, such as lighting lanterns and dragon dances.
In other countries, such as Japan, South Korea, and Vietnam, which have also been influenced deeply by Chinese culture, new celebrations have been derived from their unique cultures.
Why the Moon Festival Is Celebrated
In the past, the Moon Festival was celebrated at harvest time. Ancient Chinese emperors worshiped the moon in autumn to thank it for the harvest. The ordinary people took the Mid-Autumn Festival to be a celebration of their hard work and harvest. Nowadays, people mainly celebrate the Moon Festival is a time for family reunions. Read about the Mid-Autumn Festival Origins.When the Moon Festival Become a Festival
The Mid-Autumn Festival has a history of over 3,000 years. It was derived from the custom of moon worshiping during the Shang Dynasty (c.1600–1046 BC). After that, it was first celebrated as a national festival during the Northern Song Dynasty (960–1127).People have long believed that worshiping the moon and eating together around a round table will bring them good luck and happiness.
What the Chinese Eat for Mid-Autumn Festival
Moon cakes are the must-eat Mid-Autumn food in China. They are a traditional Chinese pastry. Chinese people see in the roundness of moon cakes a symbol of reunion and happiness.Other foods eaten during the festival are harvest foods, such as crabs, pumpkins, pomelos, and grapes. People enjoy them at their freshest, most nutritious, and auspicious meanings are particularly associated with round foods.
Festival food traditions are also changing. The younger generation has its own ideas about what should be eaten. Most of them don't like mooncakes and prefer to eat what they like.
Traveling During Mid-Autumn Festival
The festival has long been a statutory day for a public holiday in mainland China. The Mid-Autumn Festival holiday schedule is always combined with two adjacent days (if these are not weekend days then the closest weekend days are worked to compensate).In 2019, the Mid-Autumn Festival falls conveniently on Friday, September 13th so the weekend directly after it makes up the 3-day holiday. The Mid-Autumn Festival is a national holiday for the Chinese.
Chinese people increasingly love to travel during their holidays, so expect crowds at China’s tourist attractions if you travel in this period. Book in advance and let somebody in the know, like China Highlights, help you to arrange your trip so that you avoid the crowds.
