The Lantern Festival falls on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. This year it lands on March 3, a Tuesday.
In the traditional calendar, the first month is called the “Zheng” or “Yuan” month, meaning the beginning of the year. “Xiao” means night. The term “Yuanxiao” therefore denotes the first full-moon night of the new year.
The festival is also known as the Shangyuan Festival. It marks the first full moon of the year and traditionally signals the close of the New Year period. The day has long been associated with moon worship, ancestral rites, and family reunion.
From Lunar New Year’s Eve through the fifteenth day, families remained together. Those working or studying away from home were expected to return. After the fifteenth, schools reopened, work resumed, and people began departing again on the sixteenth day.
Zhou and Qin
Practices associated with the Lantern Festival predate the Zhou and Qin dynasties. The fifteenth day of the first month marked the end of winter and the beginning of spring preparations.
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Farmers worshiped Heaven and prayed for favorable weather and harvests. Fires were lit to clear weeds, drive away insects, and frighten off wild animals near fields. The custom of lighting flames on that night was already in place.
As the first full-moon night of the year, the date was regarded as a sign of completeness. Families worshiped the moon and prayed for safety. Night rituals required torches for light and protection. Fire was also believed to ward off harmful forces.
Western Han
In 181 B.C., Chen Ping and Zhou Bo suppressed the Zhu Lü Rebellion on the fifteenth day of the first month. Emperor Wen of Han ordered celebrations throughout the country and formalized the date as the Lantern Festival, continuing the practice of moon worship.
Sima Qian recorded in the “Treatise on Music” in the Records of the Grand Historian that the Han court performed nighttime sacrifices to Taiyi at Ganquan during the first month. Emperor Wu later built the Ganquan Shrine to honor Taiyi, regarded as a supreme deity. Rituals on the fifteenth were conducted from dusk until dawn. Palaces were illuminated with torches and lanterns during the ceremonies.
The Taichu Calendar listed the Lantern Festival as an official observance. By the late Western Han, its name, date, rituals, and the custom of hanging lanterns and lighting lamps were established in both court and popular practice.
Eastern Han
Taoist tradition designated three “Yuan” festivals during the year. The fifteenth day of the first month, Shangyuan, was considered the birthday of the Heavenly Official. By the Eastern Han, the Lantern Festival was commonly called the Shangyuan Festival. Worship of the Fire Official was also associated with the day, reinforcing the custom of lighting lamps and torches.
Buddhist practices were introduced as well. According to A Brief History of Monks, Sakyamuni performed miracles on the fifteenth day of the first month. Emperor Ming of Han ordered annual lamp-lighting assemblies on that date. The imperial household, temples, and common people all participated, and lantern lighting became widespread.
Sui
By the Sui dynasty, the festival had become an elaborate public event.
The “Treatise on Music” in the Book of Sui records that during the first month, envoys from various countries remained in the capital until the fifteenth day. From the Duan Gate outward for 4 kilometers, performance grounds were arranged. Officials lined the roads from dusk until dawn. Lantern displays illuminated the night.
Tang
In the Tang dynasty, Lantern Festival celebrations expanded further. Cities and towns were decorated with lanterns. Poetry from the period describes “fiery trees and silver flowers,” lantern-lit bridges, lifted curfews, and crowds filling the streets beneath the full moon.
Food customs also evolved. People ate “mian can,” dumplings made from mung bean flour shaped into small round forms and boiled in soup. Over time this developed into “yuanxiao,” later known as “tangyuan,” glutinous rice dumplings eaten during the festival.
Northern Song
The Song dynasty continued these traditions. From the first day of the year through the fifteenth, families visited one another. On Lantern Festival night, women who were usually confined to the household were permitted to go out.
By the Northern Song, the festival had become a social occasion for unmarried men and women. Ouyang Xiu’s lyric “Shengchazi: Yuanxi” records meeting beneath willow trees under the moon on Lantern Festival night and the absence of that meeting the following year.
Southern Song
Xin Qiji’s “Qingyu An: Yuanxi” describes lanterns filling the streets, music in the air, decorated carriages, and crowds moving beneath the lights. The lyric records a meeting discovered in a dimly lit corner.
During the Song period, filled glutinous rice dumplings known as “yuanzi” became common. Sweet fillings such as red bean paste or sesame were placed inside. When boiled, the dumplings rose to the surface of the pot when cooked.
Guessing lantern riddles became popular during the Southern Song. Riddles were written on lanterns for visitors to solve, forming the custom of lantern riddle guessing.
Ming
The Ming dynasty maintained these customs. The dumplings were commonly called “yuanxiao.” Records describe glutinous rice skins filled with walnut kernels, sugar, and rose, shaped and boiled in water.
A custom known as “walking the bridge” became widespread. People crossed bridges repeatedly during the Lantern Festival with the belief that doing so would help prevent illness and ensure a smooth year. Women were permitted to go out for this purpose.
Qing
In the Qing dynasty, lantern viewing and riddle guessing remained central activities. Celebrations extended over several days. The thirteenth day was for setting up lanterns; the fourteenth for testing them; the fifteenth for viewing; and the eighteenth for taking them down.
Nanjing’s Qinhuai Lantern Festival was particularly well known. Activities included sky lanterns lifted by heated air from oil lamps and water lanterns floating along rivers. Dragon and lion dances were also performed during the celebrations.
By Liu Chaoqi
