Reflections | Qu Yuan, Chinese patriot whose death is said to have inspired Dragon Boat Festival customs

Whether or not customs of Duanwu or Tuen Ng Festival can truly be ascribed to Qu Yuan’s drowning in 278BC, his life is worthy of celebration

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Dragon boat teams cross the finish line at the end of a race in Hong Kong’s Victoria Harbour in 2024. Dragon boat racing is one of the traditions of the Duanwu Festival, or Tuen Ng Festival, said to have arisen from the death of poet Qu Yuan in ancient China. Photo: Dickson Lee

Published: 8:15am, 31 May 2025

This weekend many people celebrate the Duanwu Festival, also known as the Tuen Ng Festival and the Dragon Boat Festival.

The festival, which falls on the fifth day of the fifth month in the traditional Chinese calendar, is observed by Chinese all over the world, as well as by Japanese, Koreans, Ryukyuans (or Okinawans) and Vietnamese.

The festival has long been associated with the poet Qu Yuan (342–278BC). It is because of him, the legend goes, that we row dragon boats and eat zongzi, sticky rice dumplings wrapped in bamboo leaves, during the festival. The only problem with this story is that the Duanwu Festival, or at least many of its customs, predate Qu.

At some point in time, the Chinese probably appropriated him and events in his life, eventually putting Qu at the centre of the ancient festival. In a similar way, the birth, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ were melded into pre-Christian festivals to give us our Christmas and Easter weekends.

Qu Yuan, a poet and court adviser during the Warring States Period in ancient China, died by drowning himself in a river in 278BC. Photo: Getty Images

Qu was a patriot and brilliant poet in ancient China. Born into one of the noble families of the southern Chu state during the Warring States period, he served King Huai of Chu as a trusted adviser.

He advocated alliances with other states to counter the expansionist ambitions of the powerful Qin state in the west. However, his reformist ideas and personal integrity provoked the envy and opposition of his rivals at the royal court, which led to his eventual exile.