摘要：It originally came from China, and just like the Chinese New Year and the Moon Festival, it is now one of the most celebrated fest

The Dragon Boat Festival is officially known as the Duanwu Festival in Chinese.

端午节在中国正式称为端午节。

Duanwu Festival falls on the 5th day of the 5th month on the traditional Chinese calendar, therefore it's also known as the Double Fifth Festival.

端午节落在农历五月初五，因此也被称为“重五节”。

It originally came from China, and just like the Chinese New Year and the Moon Festival, it is now one of the most celebrated festivals across Asian countries.

它起源于中国， 就像春节和中秋节一样，现在已经成为亚洲各国最重要的节日之一。

The origin of the Dragon Boat Festival is often associated with the death of Qu Yuan and Wu Zixu.

端午节的起源常与屈原和伍子胥的逝世联系在一起。

However, the festival itself has long existed before these historical figures.

然而，这个节日本身在这些历史人物出现之前就已经存在了。

Chinese people have always regarded themselves as the descendants of the Dragon, not the fire-breathing dragons from western mythology, but Chinese dragons.

中国人自古以来便视自己为龙的传人，这里的龙并非西方神话中喷火的巨龙，而是指中国龙。

According to ancient texts and discoveries, the actual origin of the festival is most likely a ceremony for worshipping the Dragon.

根据古籍记载和考古发现，端午节的实际起源很可能是一场祭龙仪式。

Rice treats were originally offerings for the dragon and racing dragon boats was part of the ritual as well.

糯米制品最初是作为献给龙的供品，而赛龙舟也是仪式的一部分。

Other than the two traditions we mentioned earlier, there exist many other customs throughout the dynasties.

除了我们之前提到的两个传统之外，各个朝代还存在许多其他习俗。

I roughly grouped them into 3 main categories.

我大致将它们分为3个主要类别。

The first one is food.

第一个是食物。

The most common one being the rice treats we talked about earlier.

最常见的就是我们之前提到的糯米团子。

In the past, people would fill millet into bamboo tubes or wrap them in leaves.

在过去，人们会将小米填入竹筒中或包裹在叶子里面。

That later became the Zongzi or rice dumplings we know today.

那后来就成了我们今天知道的粽子或糯米团。

Now it is made with glutinous rice with sweet or savory fillings.

现在它是用糯米制作的，里面可以包甜的或咸的馅料。

During the Han dynasty, there was also a tradition of eating owl soups.

在汉代，还流传着食用猫头鹰汤的习俗。

Yes, the adorable and magical owls from Harry Potter were considered an unlucky bird in ancient China.

是的，哈利·波特中可爱的神奇猫头鹰在中国古代被认为是不吉利的鸟。

People believed eating owl soups could repel evil spirits.

人们相信吃猫头鹰汤可以驱赶恶灵。

During the Tang dynasty, women and children would play a game involving shooting arrows at rice treats, such as glutinous balls and millet dumplings.

在唐朝，妇女和儿童会玩一种射箭游戏，目标是射中糯米球和小米粽之类的糯米食品。

Whoever could land their arrows on one could eat it.

谁能射中箭靶，谁就能吃到它。

But since these things are small and slippery, it was not as easy as it seems.

但因为这些东西小而滑，所以并不像看起来那么容易。

The second category is repelling evil and illnesses.

第二类是驱邪避疫。

Ancient Chinese people believed the 5th month of the Chinese calendar is an unlucky month, so there are many traditions related to expelling evil spirits.

古代中国人认为农历五月是个不吉利的月份，因此有许多驱邪的传统习俗。

For example, drinking realgar wine or xionghuang wine because it was a common antidote against poison in ancient times.

例如，喝雄黄酒，因为在古代它是一种常见的解毒剂。

Hanging medicinal herbs on the door such as mugwort and calamus leaves.

在门上挂艾草和菖蒲叶等草药。

Taking a bath with medical herbs and gathering herbs were also popular activities.

用中草药沐浴和采集草药也是流行的活动。

People would also put them into pouches and carry them around.

人们还会把它们放入香囊中随身携带。

And no matter who you were or how old you were, everyone would put braid silk threads on their arms on this day.

而且不管你是什么身份或者年龄多大，每个人都会在这一天在手臂上绑上五彩丝线。

It's made of five colored threads of red, yellow, black, white, and blue or green, each representing an element of the Five Elements - metal, wood, water, fire, and earth.

它由五种颜色的丝线制成，分别是红、黄、黑、白和蓝或绿色，每种颜色代表五行中的一个元素——金、木、水、火和土。

People believed that wearing this charm would help keep bad spirits and disease away.

人们相信佩戴这种护身符能驱邪避病。

The last activity is racing dragon boats, hence the name Dragon Boat festival.

最后一项活动是赛龙舟，因此这个节日也叫龙舟节。

Earlier we mentioned how this festival is often tied with Qu Yuan and Wu Zixu.

之前我们提到过，这个节日经常与屈原和伍子胥联系在一起。

Qu Yuan was a poet and minister during the Warring States period.

屈原是战国时期的一位诗人和大臣。

Wu Zixu was a general and politician from the Spring and Autumn period.

伍子胥是春秋时期的一位将军和政治家。

They were both patriots who wanted to give everything to serve their country but ended up dead in agony.

他们都是爱国者，想把自己的一切奉献给国家，却最终痛苦地死去。

Qu Yuan commited suicide in the river, while Wu Zixu was killed and had his body thrown into the river.

屈原在河里自杀，而伍子胥被杀后尸体也被扔进了河里。

So it was believed that people raced in boats trying to retrieve their bodies, and scattered rice treats into the water to feed the fish, to prevent them from eating their bodies.

于是人们相信， 人们划船比赛试图找回他们的尸体，并将米食撒入水中喂鱼，以防止鱼吃掉他们的尸体。

Since the boat racing tradition existed before their deaths, these stories were apparently incorporated into the festival later on.

由于赛龙舟的传统在屈原和伍子胥去世之前就已经存在，显然这些故事是后来才被融入端午节的。

Nevertheless, it is now the most exciting part of the festival, where thousands of people cheer on the land while the dragon boats row in rhythm with loud drum beats.

然而， 赛龙舟现已成为节日中最激动人心的环节，成千上万的人们在岸上呐喊助威， 龙舟伴随着响亮的鼓点节奏竞相前行。

There are many other traditions in different regions, such as shooting willow leaves on horseback, making an egg stand, training birds to talk and more.

在不同地区还有许多其他习俗，比如骑马射柳叶、立蛋、训练鸟说话等。

Other Asian countries, such as Japan, Korea, and Vietnam, each developed their own traditions throughout history.

其他亚洲国家，如日本、韩国和越南，各自在历史上发展出了自己的传统。

来源：英语东