Its true significance lies in its name

Keeping tradition alive: Competitors taking part in a dragon boat race in Hong Kong. (Left) Glutinous rice dumplings can be sweet or savoury. — AFP

ONE of Hong Kong’s biggest festivals currently sees its shores and waterways inhabited by brightly hued dragon boats. The commonly used English name for the holiday refers to this aspect: the Dragon Boat Festival, known as Festividade do Barco-Dragão (Portuguese) in Macau and Mendayung Perahu (rowing boat) in Indonesia.

But it is the Chinese name of the festival – Duanwu in mainland China, Taiwan, Singapore and Macau, and Tuen Ng (Cantonese) in Hong Kong – that reflects its significance in the lunisolar calendar, and explains its accompanying traditions.