Culture

Mid-Autumn Festival!

Global Immersions, Inc.

To all our Chinese visitors and hosts, we hope you have a wonderful time celebrating the Mid-Autumn festival! We at Global Immersions love to join in on the celebrations and festivities of different cultures, and we find that this is one of the most important ways to enrich an individual’s cultural understanding. In this blog, you will learn about the history and the meanings behind the Mid-Autumn festival, as well as ideas on how to join in on the celebrations in Boston!



Firstly, the Mid-Autumn festival occurs on the 15th day of the 8th month according to the Chinese Lunar Calendar, and it is considered to be one of the most important festivals along with the Spring Festival. Furthermore, it is always celebrated in the middle of the autumn season, hence the origin of the name, but it can also be known as the Moon Festival, as the moon is the roundest and brightest at this time of year. The origins of the festival can be traced back to the Zhou Dynasty (1046-256 BC), where the majority of the ancient Chinese people noticed that the differences in seasons and agricultural production was correlated to the movement of the moon. Due to this, the ancient Chinese thought that the moon was responsible for their increased harvest, and started offering sacrifices to the moon on autumn days as a means of expressing their gratitude. 


Although at first the sacrifice was limited to the royal families and emperors, as time went on the aristocrats and literary scholars helped to spread the word to the common people. Whilst the rich merchants and high ranked officials celebrated the moon by hosting large parties and drinking, the common citizens also began to pray for a good harvest and worship the moon. Throughout the Tang, Song, Ming, and Qing dynasty, the mid-autumn Festival became a fixed date and started to grow into one of the grandest festivals it is today.

Since the mid-autumn festival revolves around offering sacrifices to the moon, there are certain customs that must be followed during the festival. Firstly, appreciating the moon during the festival is one of the major customs. The full moon in Chinese culture symbolizes completeness, and hence the festival is a time for family members to all reunite and spend time together. This includes them  sitting around a table and talking to each other, having a large feast and eating the offerings from the ceremony, spending time outside and admiring the full moon together, as well as wishing each other well for the future ahead. Another hallmark tradition of the mid-autumn festival is the making and sharing of mooncakes. This is because mooncakes are round shaped, and thus the sharing of mooncakes amongst family members once again symbolizes their unity and completeness. 

In modern times, the custom of giving away mooncakes to family members, friends, and loved ones has become more popular than the making of mooncakes, yet the meaning behind them remain the same.  Although there have been many legends behind the origin of mooncakes, one popular legend is that at the end of the Yuan dynasty, the Han Chinese used mooncakes to hide secret messages and notes about an uprising on Mid-Autumn day. Furthermore, apart from these two major customs, there are many other traditions such as the lighting and carrying of brightly colored lit lanterns as a gesture to pray for pregnancy, dragon dances to commemorate the beginning of festivities, as well as the burning of incense buckets to further show appreciation to the moon.

After learning the background and traditions, why not join in and celebrate the festival in Boston! Head down to Chinatown on Sunday, August 9th from 10:00 am to 6:00 am along Harrison and Beach Street, as there will not be a shortage of delicious Chinese food, dragon dances, abundance of mooncakes, musicians, martial artists and more! 

When:  Sunday, August 9, 10am – 5pm

Where:  The Chinatown Gate area on Harrison Ave, Chinatown in Downtown Boston

Closest T station:   Orange Line / Chinatown


By Global Immersions, Inc.

Global Immersions, Inc. specializes in Boston Homestay living for individuals and customized Group Homestay Programs. Global Immersions, Inc. distinguishes itself in the industry with its commitment to building cultural awareness and fostering global understanding. We are dedicated to the advancement of living and learning opportunities that provide an in-depth understanding of U.S. culture.