Mid-Autumn Festival, Zhongqiu Jie (中秋节) in Chinese, is also called the Moon Festival or the Mooncake Festival. It is the second most important festival in China after Chinese New Year. It is also celebrated by many other Asian countries, such as Singapore, Malaysia, and the Philippines.
Hostory of Mid-Autumn Festival.
The festival started more than 2,000 years ago as a post-autumn harvest celebration, which was devoted to thanking the gods. Most scholars believe that the Mid-autumn Festival first appeared during the Song dynasty, derived from the tradition of worshipping the moon. Legends associated with the full moon became attached to this festival. It was during the reign of Emperor Tai (Northern Song dynasty) that the 15th day of the eighth month was designated as mid-autumn’s day.
How to Host a Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival Feast
The evening's dishes emphasize the bounty of fall's harvest—pumpkin, chestnuts, taro, persimmons, sweet potato, walnuts, and mushrooms figure centrally in most meals along with traditional celebratory foods like crab, pork, and duck. Feasts also heavily feature round foods like mooncakes, a nod to the full moon's representation of unity and togetherness for families. In addition to Chinese New Year, the Mid-Autumn Festival is an important time for families to be reunited, much like Thanksgiving in the United States.
What is the difference between Thanksgiving and Mid-Autumn Festival?
The most popular Mid-Autumn Festival foods include moon cakes, pumpkin, river snails, taro, wine fermented with osmanthus flowers, duck and hairy crabs. Traditional Thanksgiving foods include turkey, stuffing, gravy, sweet potatoes,
cornbread, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, and pie for dessert.
What gifts do you give for Mid-Autumn Festival?
- Mooncake — The Classic Must-Give Gift.
- Fresh Hairy Crab — The Most Delicious Gift.
- Tea — Nice Drink with Mooncakes.
- Fruit Basket — Healthy.
- Organic Rice and Oil — New Favorite
Happy mid-Autumn Festival !
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