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The 10 Fun Facts About Mid-Autumn Festival You May Not Know
10个你可能不知道的中秋节趣闻
Mid-Autumn Festival is listed in China’s Intangible Cultural Heritages.
The Mid-Autumn Festival originated from Tang Dynasty (618 - 907 AD) and flourished in the Song Dynasty (960 - 1279 AD). It has since become an important festival among Chinese people. On May 20, 2006, the State Council included it in the first batch of China’s intangible cultural heritage for that it is a day for Chinese family reunion; it is widely celebrated by Chinese with many traditional customs such as admiring the full moon, worshipping the moon and eating mooncakes.
中秋节起源于唐朝（618 - 907年），兴盛于宋朝（960 -1279年）。从那时起，它就成为了中国人的一个重要节日。2006年5月20日，国务院将中秋节列入中国首批国家级非物质文化遗产名录，因为这一天是中国人合家团圆的节日。人们通过赏月、拜月和吃月饼等传统习俗来庆祝这一节日。
The festival has many other names.There are many other names for the Mid-Autumn Festival. Since it’s on the 15th day of the eighth lunar month in autumn, it is also called “August Festival” and “Autumn Festival”. Other names are “Chinese Moon Festival”, “Autumn Moon Festival”, “Playing the Moon Festival”, “Worship the Moon Festival”, and “Reunion Festival” for that it’s a full moon day which symbolizes family reunion. The festival food is mooncake, so another popular name is "Chinese Moon Cake Festival". In recent years, its Chinese name “zhong qiu jie” also gets more and more popular worldwide.
中秋节还有许多别称。因为它在秋天的农历八月十五日，因此也叫“八月节”和“秋节”。此外，还有“月亮节”、“秋月节”、“玩月节”、“拜月节”和“团圆节”等叫法，因为这是一个满月的日子，象征着家庭团聚。由于中秋节的传统食品是月饼，它还被称为“月饼节”。近年来，“中秋节”这个中文名称在世界范围内越来越广为人知。
The full moon may not occur on Mid-Autumn Day.One of the interesting facts about Mid-Autumn Festival is that the full moon doesn’t always show on the 15th day of the 8th lunar month. In fact, it is possible that the full moon is on the 14th, 16th, or 17th day of the 8th lunar month.
According to the astronomical rule, the new moon may show up in different times of the first day of each lunar month and it takes less than 15 days for a new moon to become a full moon. If the new moon shows at early morning of the first day of 8th lunar month, the full moon may show up on the 14th or 15th day of 8th lunar month; while it shows at night, the full moon may show up on the 16th day or even17th day.
关于中秋节的一个有趣的事实是，八月十五中秋节当天并不一定有满月。实际上，满月可能出现在农历八月的十四、十六或十七日。根据天文规律，新月可能出现在每个农历月初一这天不同的时间里，而新月变成满月的时间不到15天。如果新月出现在八月初一的清晨，满月可能在八月十四日或十五日；如果新月在八月初一的夜间出现，满月可能出现在八月十六或十七日。
It was once the Valentine’s Day in ancient China.People now widely consider Qixi Festival as Chinese Valentine’s Day. However, a fun fact is that the Mid-Autumn Festival is also a valentine’s day at the beginning. In Chinese mythology, the God of the Moon is in charge of love and marriage. He creates love between boys and girls by tying them together with a magic silk line that cannot be seen by ordinary people. So the festival to worship the moon is originally a festival to pray for love and happy marriage. Till today, in west Hunan, there is a special custom that girls “steal” vegetables from the vegetable garden of their loved boys when the full moon shows, and the boys will be invited to girls’ homes to have a bowl of oil-tea. This custom gives chances for unmarried boys and girls to have a date.
如今，人们普遍将七夕节看作是中国的情人节，但有趣的是，中秋节最初也是情人节。在中国神话中，月神掌管爱情和婚姻。他用一根普通人看不见的红线将男女连在一起，创造出他们之间的爱情。因此，中秋节原本是一个祈求爱情和幸福婚姻的节日。直到今天，在湘西仍保留着一个特别的习俗，当满月升起时，女孩会“偷”心仪男孩家菜园里的蔬菜，男孩则会被邀请到女孩家中喝一碗油茶，这一习俗为未婚男女提供了约会的机会。
The festival’s origin may relate to the imperial examination in ancient time.
One of Mid-Autumn Festival fun facts is that Mid-Autumn Festival has a subtle relation with the ancient imperial examinations. In the feudal society, imperial examinations were arranged in the eighth lunar month. People would celebrate with examinee who pass the exam. This custom has gradually evolved into the important festival that has prevailed over the ages.
中秋节的一个有趣的事实是中秋节与古代科举考试有着微妙的联系。在封建社会，科举考试通常安排在农历八月。考生科举高中后，人们会为他们庆祝。这种习俗逐渐演变成了一个重要的节日，最终形成了中秋节。
The “mooncake” was named by Concubine Yang of the Tang Dynasty.Another Mid-Autumn Festival fun fact is that the mooncake was once called “Hu Cake”. One year of Mid-Autumn Festival night, Li Longji, an emperor of Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD), and his Concubine Yang were eating Hu cakes. Li Longji thought that the name of “Hu Cake” was not good. The bright moon in the sky inspired Concubine Yang, and then she said “mooncake” was better. From then on, the name “mooncake” gradually spread in the folk.
中秋节的另一个有趣的事实是月饼原来叫“胡饼”。唐朝（618-907年）的某年中秋节之夜，唐玄宗李隆基和杨贵妃一起吃胡饼。李隆基觉得“胡饼”这个名字不好听，天上的明月给了杨贵妃灵感，她说“月饼”这个名字更好。从那时起，“月饼”这个名字逐渐在民间流传开来。
Right way to eat the mooncake: all family members sharing one.Yes, you read it well! It’s not “one for each person”. According to traditional customs, the right way to eat mooncakes is that the mooncake symbolizing the full moon is cut into pieces and shared by all family members, one piece for each family member. If there are family members who are not in home, the parents should store the mooncake pieces that belong to them and wait till they come home to taste it.
是的，你没看错！不是“每人一个月饼”。根据传统习俗，吃月饼的正确方法是把象征满月的月饼切成多块，家人共同分享，每人一块。如果有家人不在家，父母会把属于他们的那块月饼块保存起来，等他们回家后再品尝。
The biggest mooncake in the world was shared by 110,000 people.The 2007 Guinness World Record shows that the largest moon cake was born in China, with a diameter of 8.15 meters, a thickness of 20 centimeters and a total weight of 12.98 tons, which can be enjoyed by 110,000 people. The Mid-Autumn Festival fun fact is that big mooncakes are made every year but no one has surpassed it.
根据2007年吉尼斯世界纪录，世界上最大的月饼诞生于中国，直径为8.15米，厚度20厘米，总重12.98吨，可供11万人享用。这个中秋节有趣的事实是，虽然每年都会制作巨型月饼，但至今没有人打破这一纪录。
The mooncakes were once used to deliver military messages.Zhu Yuanzhang, the founder of Ming Dynasty (1368-1644 AD), led an uprising to fight against the crucial royal court. They decided to uprise on the 15th day of 8th lunar month. For safety and secrecy, Zhu Yuanzhang ordered soldiers to wrap the notes with “uprise on 15th night of 8th month” into mooncakes and sent them to various resistance forces. On the Mid-Autumn night, many resistance forces responded to the note.
明朝(公元1368-1644年)开国皇帝朱元璋领导起义对抗残暴的朝廷。他们决定在农历八月十五日夜晚起义。为了安全和保密，朱元璋命令士兵将写有“八月十五夜起义”的纸条藏在月饼中，送到各地起义队伍手中。在中秋夜，收到通知，各地纷纷响应，成功发动了起义。
It is the time particularly efficacious to pray for a happy marriage.In the old days, unmarried men and women would quietly pray under the full moon on the Mid-Autumn Festival, and plead to the matchmaker, God of Moon, to find a spouse and have a happy marriage.
在过去，未婚男女会在中秋节的满月下默默祈祷，向月神祈求找到理想伴侣并拥有幸福的婚姻。
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