It is held on the 15th day of the 8th month of the Chinese lunisolar calendar with a full moon at night, corresponding to mid-September to early October of the Gregoria. Use the links to jump through the sections. The Mid-Autumn Festival, also known as the Moon Festival or Mooncake Festival, is a harvest festival celebrated in Chinese culture.

Guised under different names, here's how it's traditionally celebrated in different countries. It can extend up to three days in some Asian countries, where public holidays are announced in the spirit of celebration.īut regardless of where it's celebrated, gatherings, worship and food form the cornerstones of the event. How is the Mid-Autumn Festival celebrated?Ĭelebrations vary between cultures and regions, and even among diasporas. This means the date of celebration differs every year, but it would usually be between September and October. The day is determined by the lunar calendar and is said to be when the Moon is shining the brightest.įollowing the phases of the Moon, the lunar calendar lags behind the widely used Gregorian calendar - which follows the movement of the Sun - by about 21 to 51 days. This year, the Mid-Autumn Festival begins on Friday, 29 September. Here's a rundown of how it's celebrated in various communities and where you can join in the celebrations in Australia. The festival, which goes by different names in different countries, originally came about to celebrate the end of a harvest season in the Northern Hemisphere.

Farmers celebrate the end of the summer harvesting season on this date. Lastly, osmanthus wine or tea is often paired with mooncakes - osmanthus is believed to be the key to longevity.The sight of a full moon is often doused in spiritual meanings across many cultures.įor thousands of Australians of East and South-East Asian descent, the full moon this Friday signals the beginning of the Mid-Autumn Festival. The Mid-Autumn Festival is one of the two most important holidays in the Chinese calendar, the other being the Chinese New Year, and is a legal holiday in several countries. They come in a variety of flavours, but the black sesame or peanut fillings are the most traditional. In the 1960s, street signs in Chinatown began to be bilingual, displaying both its English and Chinese names. The character ‘ yuen’ is present in the Chinese word for ‘togetherness’ ( tuen yuen). Star fruit and pomelo are some examples of this, so stock up!įamily reunion meals are always rounded off with glutinous rice balls ( tong yuen). Mooncakes are notoriously filling, so cut them up into wedges and share with your loved ones.įruits are also a staple food during this season, especially ones which have Chinese names or shapes that carry auspicious connotations. Celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival with lantern lighting, mooncake tasting, cultural performances, DIY workshops, and traditional games. Over the years, bakeries have developed a wide variety of contemporary flavours - take your pick from frozen snow skin mooncakes to those with tea, coffee, truffles and mochi fillings. Traditionally, they contain a lotus seed paste and salted egg yolk centre. These round pastries embody the full moon, symbolising unity and harmony. Needless to say, mooncakes are the quintessential symbol of the Mid-Autumn Festival. Riddles written on slips of paper would be attached to lanterns, and usually contained auspicious messages of wisdom and good fortune. Some versions are electronically operated and even play music, but you can definitely still buy the traditional paper variety.Īnother Mid-Autumn tradition is solving lantern riddles. Ancient Chinese poets often wax lyrical at the moon, so perhaps you will also be struck by inspiration! The best moon gazing spots in Hong Kong include the Sun Yat Sen Memorial Park, Victoria Park, Tamar Park, West Kowloon Art Park and Hong Kong Park.Ĭhildren used to be taught to make and decorate their own paper lanterns, but with the scores of lantern shops that sprout up across the city, it is much easier to simply purchase and head to the park at night, illuminating your way with a lit lantern. Of course, admiring the full moon itself is also a must, starting with welcoming the moon on the eve of Mid-Autumn, moon gazing on the night of the festival itself, and bidding farewell to the moon on the following day. Because the full moon represents reunions, families take advantage of the festival as a chance to gather, usually for a family meal which ends with mooncakes, glutinous rice balls and seasonal fruits.

Chinese mid autumn festival events