The myth behind the Dragon Boat Festival began with a poet’s death. His work lives on

In exile, poet and statesman Qu Yuan wrote an influential Chinese poem. His death in 278BC sparked the myth behind the Dragon Boat Festival

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A dragon boat race in Sai Kung in Hong Kong during the Dragon Boat Festival. A poet’s death in 278BC forms the basis of the festival’s origin myth. Photo: Dickson Lee

Lisa Lim has held professoriate positions at universities in Singapore, Hong Kong, Amsterdam, Sydney, and Perth, including as Head of the School of English at the University of Hong Kong.

Published: 7:45am, 10 Jun 2024

For East and Southeast Asia, the fifth day of the fifth lunar month is Tuen Ng Jit (Cantonese) or Duānwǔjié (Mandarin).

Ng/wu refers to the sun’s position at its highest point, and tuen/duan means “extreme, upright”, referring to the summer solstice.

Celebrations include eating sticky rice dumplings (zongzi) and racing dragon boats – prompting the English nickname Dragon Boat Festival.

Its origins in Chinese mythology are darker: it commemorates the suicide in 278BC of Qu Yuan (屈原), a well-loved poet and statesman of the Chu kingdom, during the Zhou dynasty’s Warring States period.

Participants take part in a dragon boat race in Aberdeen, Hong Kong, in 2023. Photo: Sam Tsang

A champion of political loyalty and truth, Qu Yuan advocated resistance to the hegemonic Qin state – which led to jealous, corrupt rivals’ accusations of treason, and his subsequent banishment.

The myth behind the Dragon Boat Festival began with a poet’s death. His work lives on

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;}In exile, poet and statesman Qu Yuan wrote an influential Chinese poem. His death in 278BC sparked the myth behind the Dragon Boat Festival

In exile, poet and statesman Qu Yuan wrote an influential Chinese poem. His death in 278BC sparked the myth behind the Dragon Boat Festival