--- title: Lanterns, dragon boats, mooncakes and birthdays — a lesson of Mova's school · trees and pragmatics description: «Lanterns, dragon boats, mooncakes and birthdays», a lesson of the chinese street course of Mova's primary school, sentence by sentence with dependency trees and pragmatics. It begins: In early summer comes Duānwǔ jié, the Dragon Boat Festival, with races to a drumbeat and sticky rice parcels, zòngz --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/chinese-street/27-lanterns-dragon-boats-mooncakes-birthdays/) [home](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [corpora](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/) / [school](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/) / [Chinese street](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/chinese-street/) / Lanterns, dragon boats, mooncakes and… # Lanterns, dragon boats, mooncakes and birthdays Lesson 27 of the chinese street course of Mova's primary school: 16 sentences, each with its syntax tree and pragmatics. The lessons are written for Mova, and their agreed trees are part of Mova corpus 0.4 (CC BY-SA 4.0). How Mova does on its tests: [the lesson at school](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/school-run/chinese-street/27-lanterns-dragon-boats-mooncakes-birthdays/). - [1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/chinese-street/27-lanterns-dragon-boats-mooncakes-birthdays/1/) — In early summer comes Duānwǔ jié, the Dragon Boat Festival, with races to a drumbeat and sticky rice parcels, zòngzi; it remembers a poet who drowned, so some families wish "Duānwǔ ānkāng" (a peaceful Duanwu) instead of "happy". - [2](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/chinese-street/27-lanterns-dragon-boats-mooncakes-birthdays/2/) — In September or October comes Zhōngqiū jié, the Mid-Autumn or Moon Festival: families cut a rich mooncake into small pieces and look at the full moon for the lady Cháng'é and her jade rabbit. - [3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/chinese-street/27-lanterns-dragon-boats-mooncakes-birthdays/3/) — Birthdays have their own food: chángshòumiàn, long-life noodles — don't bite them short, slurp them whole, because long noodles mean long life. - [4](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/chinese-street/27-lanterns-dragon-boats-mooncakes-birthdays/4/) — One day in early April is not a party at all: Qīngmíng jié, Tomb-Sweeping Day, when families quietly visit and clean the graves of their grandparents and ancestors. - [5](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/chinese-street/27-lanterns-dragon-boats-mooncakes-birthdays/5/) — "Yuánxiāo jié" is the Lantern Festival, fifteen days after New Year, at the first full moon of the year; it ends the New Year season. - [6](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/chinese-street/27-lanterns-dragon-boats-mooncakes-birthdays/6/) — "tāngyuán" are sweet rice balls in warm syrup, often with black sesame inside; their round shape means the family together, and they are hot inside. - [7](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/chinese-street/27-lanterns-dragon-boats-mooncakes-birthdays/7/) — "dēnglong" means lantern; "cāi dēngmí", guessing riddles written on lanterns, is a Lantern Festival game. - [8](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/chinese-street/27-lanterns-dragon-boats-mooncakes-birthdays/8/) — "Duānwǔ jié" is the Dragon Boat Festival, in early summer on the 5th day of the 5th lunar month; it remembers a poet who drowned, and some families wish "Duānwǔ ānkāng". - [9](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/chinese-street/27-lanterns-dragon-boats-mooncakes-birthdays/9/) — "zòngzi" are sticky rice parcels wrapped in bamboo leaves and tied with string; you don't eat the leaves, and sweet versus salty filling starts north–south family arguments. - [10](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/chinese-street/27-lanterns-dragon-boats-mooncakes-birthdays/10/) — "sài lóngzhōu" means dragon boat racing; the drummer at the front sets the beat, and there are races in British cities too. - [11](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/chinese-street/27-lanterns-dragon-boats-mooncakes-birthdays/11/) — "Zhōngqiū jié" is the Mid-Autumn or Moon Festival, in September or October at the full moon; it is a family reunion night second only to New Year. - [12](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/chinese-street/27-lanterns-dragon-boats-mooncakes-birthdays/12/) — "yuèbing" means mooncake, very rich, shared and cut into small pieces. - [13](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/chinese-street/27-lanterns-dragon-boats-mooncakes-birthdays/13/) — "shǎng yuè" means looking at the full moon together; the story says the lady Cháng'é lives on the moon with a jade rabbit. - [14](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/chinese-street/27-lanterns-dragon-boats-mooncakes-birthdays/14/) — "shēngrì kuàilè" means happy birthday; "zhù nǐ shēngrì kuàilè" is sung to the same tune as the English song. - [15](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/chinese-street/27-lanterns-dragon-boats-mooncakes-birthdays/15/) — "chángshòumiàn" are longevity noodles eaten on birthdays, especially grandparents'; you don't cut or bite them short, because long noodles mean long life. - [16](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/chinese-street/27-lanterns-dragon-boats-mooncakes-birthdays/16/) — "Qīngmíng jié" is Tomb-Sweeping Day in early April, a quiet, respectful day of visiting family graves; you don't say "happy Qingming". - ← previous: [Red envelopes and New Year wishes](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/chinese-street/26-red-envelopes-and-new-year-wishes/) - next →: [At the friend's home: what to say to the parents](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/chinese-street/28-at-the-friends-home-what-to-say-to-the-parents/) - ↑ back to [Chinese street](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/chinese-street/)