As China marks the annual Farmers' Harvest Festival on the Autumn Equinox on September 23 this year, communities nationwide are celebrating ancient agricultural traditions.
The Harvest Festival, established nationally in 2018, honors agricultural communities and their contributions. The timing aligns with ancient traditions across southern China, where autumn has long been a period of harvest celebration.
In the Lingnan region, customary autumn equinox practices include foraging for wild amaranth, known locally as "autumn green vegetable." Families traditionally prepare this with fish slices in a soup called "autumn soup," believed to promote health and household safety for the coming year. A local saying accompanies the tradition: "Autumn soup cleanses the organs and washes the liver. All family members, young and old, will be safe and healthy."
The region also has historical connections to moon worship during the equinox. Ancient Chaoshan areas practiced spring equinox sun worship and autumn equinox moon worship. The modern Mid-Autumn Festival developed from these autumn equinox traditions, eventually being fixed on the 15th day of the eighth lunar month to ensure good moonlight.
Kite flying represents another autumnal tradition in Guangdong. During the equinox period, particularly on the equinox itself, various traditional kites fill the skies, including character-shaped kites, catfish kites, moth-eyed kites, centipede kites, and moon-shaped kites, typically measuring about two to three feet.
Author & Poster | Feng Huiting
Editor | Liu Lingzhi, James Campion, Shen He
