端午节的由来与习俗

The Dragon Boat Festival, also called the Duanwu Festival, is celebrated on the fifth day of the fifth month according to the Chinese calendar.
端午节，又称端阳节，按中国农历在五月初五庆祝。

The festival is best known for its dragon-boat races, especially in the southern provinces and eating the rice called zongzi.
这个节日最著名的是赛龙舟，尤其在南方省份，以及吃一种叫“粽子”的糯米食品。

People do these to remember the death of Qu Yuan, an honest minister (大臣) who is said to drown (淹死) himself in a river.
人们这样做是为了纪念屈原之死，他是一位正直的大臣，据说投河自尽。

Qu was a minister of the State of Chu in present-day Hunan and Hubei Provinces, during the Warring States Period (475–221 BC).
屈原是战国时期（公元前475–221年）楚国的大臣，楚国位于今天的湖南和湖北地区。

He brought peace and wealth(财富) to the state.
他为该国带来了和平与财富。

However, a dishonest prince vilified Qu.
然而，一位不诚实的王子诋毁了屈原。

Realizing that the country was now in the hands of bad people, Qu jumped into the Miluo River on the fifth day of the fifth month.
意识到国家已落入坏人之手，屈原于五月初五跳入汨罗江。

Nearby villagers rushed over to try to save him but were unable to even find his body.
附近的村民急忙赶来试图救他，却连他的尸体都找不到。

After that, people got to the river by boat and threw rice into the water, hoping that the fish ate the rice instead of Qu Yuan’s body every year on the fifth day of the fifth month.
此后，人们每年五月初五乘船到江边，向水中投掷米饭，希望鱼儿吃掉米饭而非屈原的身体。

For thousands of years, the festival has been marked by rice called zongzi and dragon boat races.
数千年来，这个节日一直以粽子和龙舟赛为标志。