Lantern Festival and Lantern Fair

Name: Lantern Festival and Lantern Fair
ISBN: 9787546348032

陈秀伶 / 董胜Jilin Publishing Group Co., Ltd. · ChinaApr 2017

3.8

Word count: 70K words
Chapters: 24
ISBN: 9787546348032

Report an error Find this book

Summary

Every year on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, China celebrates the traditional Yuanxiao Festival (Lantern Festival). In the lunar calendar, the first month is called the "yuan" month, and the ancients referred to night as "xiao." Since the fifteenth day is the first full-moon night of the year, it is called the Yuanxiao Festival. Also known as the Small First Month, the Night of the Yuan, or the Lantern Festival, it is the first important festival after the Spring Festival. Since the Han Dynasty, people have had the custom of hanging and appreciating lanterns on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, which is why this day is also called the Lantern Festival. According to Chinese folk tradition, on the night of the fifteenth day of the first lunar month—when the cycle begins anew, the earth returns to spring, and a bright moon hangs high—people take part in a series of activities such as viewing lantern displays, guessing lantern riddles, and eating yuanxiao. The whole family gathers together and enjoys warm joy.

Editor's review

Yuanxiao and the Lantern Festival is a focused study of the Yuanxiao Festival, a traditional Chinese festive culture. Through an in-depth examination of the festival's historical development, folk activities, and cultural connotations, the book not only presents the visual splendor of the "lantern festival" as a surface spectacle but also uncovers the social structures, folk beliefs, and aesthetic changes underlying it. The author, Chen Xiuling, combines scholarly rigor with accessible readability. From the Han Dynasty custom of lighting lanterns on the Shangyuan Festival to the bustling lantern markets of the Tang and Song dynasties and the distinctive regional lantern traditions that formed after the Ming and Qing dynasties, the narrative follows a clear thread. The book examines in detail the crafts of lantern making, riddle guessing, and eating yuanxiao, and explores the social functions and emotional significance of the Yuanxiao Festival as one of the rare "carnivals" of ancient times. In a contemporary context where the meaning of traditional festivals is increasingly thinned out and commercialized, this book offers a deep cultural return to roots, reminding readers of the historical weight and communal bonding significance behind festive customs. Its value lies not only in popularizing knowledge but also in inspiring contemporary reflection on the protection and transmission of intangible cultural heritage.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers with a strong interest in traditional Chinese folk culture and festival history
Professionals engaged in intangible cultural heritage research or folklore studies
General readers who wish to understand the cultural connotations of the Yuanxiao Festival more deeply and seek cultural grounding for family or community activities
History enthusiasts who enjoy understanding ancient social life and everyday history through specific festivals

Not a good fit for

Readers looking for light, entertaining festival stories or books chiefly featuring colorful image collections
Readers expecting modern commercial planning ideas for the Yuanxiao Festival or detailed current travel guides to lantern fairs around China

Reading tips

Reading chapter by chapter is recommended: first build a framework of historical development, then delve into the details of specific customs.
While reading, compare the material with your own regional Yuanxiao Festival experiences to appreciate both the unity and diversity of culture.
The book contains many quotations from classical texts and historical allusions; taking notes as you read will help you understand the continuity of cultural change.

About the publisher

Jilin Publishing Group Co., Ltd. China · Founded in 2003

Jilin Publishing Group Co., Ltd. focuses on fine fiction, social sciences, literary appreciation, history, classical poetry and classical literature, with 1,141 titles in the library. Representative books include Dan Simmons's science fiction novels Hyperion and The Fall of Hyperion, Freud's works on psychology and society such as The Ego and the Id and Group Psychology, and classical literature ranging from Laozi and Zhuangzi, Romance of the Three Kingdoms and Three Hundred Poems of the Tang, Song and Yuan Dynasties to Lü Simian's A General History of China. Its authors include Dan Simmons, Freud, Laozi, Lü Simian, Hengtang Tuishi, Pan Zhenhua, Li Yi and Guan Shanming, reflecting a balance between translated works and domestic editions. Public information is limited; the above is based on the library's holdings.

悠久历史——起源发展起源于远古人类以火把驱邪
由误射神鸟引起的张灯习俗
丰富意蕴——彩灯文化一年中灯火最旺的时节
趣味盎然的元宵节咏灯诗
源于唐诗名句的最早灯联
绚丽多彩——各地灯会定型于隋朝的元宵灯节
元宵灯会在宋代盛况空前
元明两代灯文化趋于民间化
天下第一灯的自贡灯会
荟萃众家之长的成都灯会
争奇斗艳的各地灯会
传承两千多年的灯文化意蕴
博大精深——灯谜文化由夏朝歌谣演变而来的灯谜
结合汉字结构的灯谜猜法
精巧玲珑的各地元宵彩灯
团团圆圆——元宵历史起源于春秋时期的元宵美食
传统元宵的制作方法和食用
福建丰富多彩的闹元宵活动
民间各地红红火火闹元宵
喜庆开怀——节日习俗南北异风的舞狮子和踩高跷
承继殷周祭天遗风的舞龙
纪念大禹治水的划旱船活动
潮汕地区独特的元宵节习俗
极富地方特色的元宵习俗

FAQ

What is this book's Douban rating?

A search shows that the book currently has no rating information on Douban; it is a relatively niche thematic work on folk culture. Its value lies more in the systematic and professional nature of its content.

Does the book contain many pictures?

The book is primarily narrative and historical, not a picture album. Illustrations may be present as supplementary material but are not the main content.

What is the academic background of the author, Chen Xiuling?

Chen Xiuling is the author of the book. A search shows that detailed public information about her academic background is limited. Judging from the content of the book, the author has solid research grounding and strong ability in organizing materials in the field of folk culture.

Comments

Find this book

This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.

About the author

陈秀伶 Author

Chen Xiuling: publicly available information is limited, and details such as nationality, dates of birth and death, and educational background are not clearly recorded. Judging from the 53 works held in the library, Chen is an author with a notably wide range of subjects, mainly covering traditional Chinese culture, history books, and political topics. In the area of traditional culture, the works focus on the Four Treasures of the Study—paper, brush, ink, and inkstone—and their cultural connotations, as well as festivals and folk customs such as the Spring Festival and New Year's Eve, the Dragon Boat Festival and dragon boat racing, and temple fairs and country markets, with attention to tracing origins and explaining cultural significance. In history and politics, the works address topics such as the establishment of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence in New China's diplomacy and the founding of the Chinese People's Liberation Army Marine Corps. The writing emphasizes popular knowledge and narrative exposition in plain language, suited to general readers, and has had a certain influence in spreading traditional culture and historical knowledge.

董胜 Author · Chinese · 1970

Dong Sheng, who writes under the pen name Haizi, was born in May 1970 in Yantai, Shandong. A poet and writer, he is a member of the Shandong Writers Association and also of the Chinese Poetry Society and the Chinese Fiction Society. Before the age of 13 he lived at the Xiaopingdao naval port in Dalian, an experience that later shaped his novel Deep Love for the China Sea. He has published the poetry collections Declaration of True Feelings and Water's Edge, and the novels Deep Love for the China Sea and Escaping the Report Card, working across poetry, fiction and popular history. His compiled works include the multi-volume Five Thousand Years of China and Five Thousand Years of the World, as well as titles on traditional culture such as the Dragon Boat Festival and dragon boat racing, along with books on personal growth and examinations. The library holds 49 of his works, reflecting a writing career that combines literary expression with accessible history and culture for general readers and young people.