The Dragon Boat Festival or Duan Wu festival, as its also know as, ?is one of the most important Chinese festivals celebrated on the fifth day of the fifth month of the Chinese lunar calendar. Today, Chinese Dragon boat racing has become an international event, and a world championship event not just Chinese people to participate in, but the whole world.

The Dragon boat festival has a long history of over 2000years. It dates back to the Spring and Autumn Periods (722-481 BC).The Dragon Boat Festival commemorates the date that an ancient poet and patriot committed suicide by jumping into the Miluo River.

Qu Yuan was a high court official of the State of Chu in the period of the warring states. Qu Yuan wrote beautiful and passionate poems for his country, against the evil officials. Eventually, he became disillusioned and he took his own life by drowning himself in the Milo River. According to the legend, local villages heard about this event, and immediately raced their boat out to the river in search for him but could not be able to find him.

However, they could not find it, and the people threw rice dumplings into the river to satisfy the hunger of the sea creatures so that the poet's body would not be mutilated.That is the origin of the dragon boat races and the eating of glutinous rice dumplings, which is sticky rice mix with flavors (salty, sweet, or meat) stuffed inside a bamboo leaves.

Today, holding Boat racing, eating Zongzi, and hanging Calamus and Chinese Mugwort still compose the traditional customs of the Dragon Boat Festival.

Dragon boat racing is one indispensable part of the festival's celebration. It’s held on the fifth day of the fifth month of the Chinese lunar calendar each year in many cities in southern China, especially in the regions of the southern Yangtze River. The boats, ranging in length from 45 to 120 feet long, are decorated with colorful pennants and a fierce head of a dragon at the front of the boat, driving it on to victory. The dragons are searching the water for Wut Yuan's body, symbolically, of course.

Eating Zong zi is a traditional custom of dragon boat festival. Zong zi is made of is a glutinous rice wrapped in reed or bamboo leaves. The fillings of a Zong zi can be an egg, beans, dates, fruits, sweet potato, walnuts, mushrooms, meat, or a combination of them. Triangle and pyramid are its most popular shape. Zong zi is generally steamed, and is very delicious and enjoyed widely by many people.

Another custom of celebrating the Dragon Boat ?that Chinese people accustom too is hanging Chinese mugwort and calamus on their front doors as a symbol of keeping good luck and warding off evil spirit.

There is also another origin of the formation of Dragon Boat Festival, this origin says that the festival is for honoring water dragons, for in some regions of China, people consider water dragons as the most powerful dragons. By honoring the dragons, farmers will have water (rain) for their crop next year, and since the dragon is the god of the water world, after the dragon boats sail in the water, the water will be blessed. It is also a tradition for people to wash their hair and body with the blessed water on the day to ensure good luck the coming year.