The Chongyang Festival falls on the ninth day of the ninth lunar month and is also called the Double Ninth Festival. People usually celebrate the day by (admire)
chrysanthemums( 菊 花 ) and climbing mountains , so the festival is also called the Height Ascending( 登 高 ) Festival or the Chrrysanthemum Festival. In China, nine has the same
(pronounce) as the word"forever", meaning long life. So in 1989, the Chinese government set the day as Senior's Day.
The festival has a history of over 2, 000 years. During the Warring States Period, there was the Chongyang Festival., it was only celebrated in the imperial palace. From the Han Dynasty, it began to be popular common people. The name of the Chongyang Festival (one) appeared in the Three Kingdoms Period. During the Dynasty, there were (tradition) of enjoying chrysanthemums and drinking wines on the day. It was not officially set as a festival until the Tang Dynasty. Since then, all the people (spread) their happiness and wishes by doing many kinds of (activity). In the Ming and Qing Dynasties, people in the imperial palace all ate flower cakes to celebrate. The emperor climbed the mountains on the day as well. an interesting festival it is!
