Mid-Autumn Festival

What has three names and celebrates the moon? China’s Mid-Autumn Festival, also known as the Moon Festival or Harvest Moon Festival, is celebrated on the 15th day of the eighth month of the lunar calendar — or September 10 this year.

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Everything you need to know about the Mid-Autumn Festival

Mid-Autumn Festival, also known as the lantern or moon festival, takes place annually on the 15th day of the eighth month in the Chinese calendar. This year, that day falls on September 10. To celebrate the holiday, families and friends gather to revel in festivities like feasting on mooncakes, playing with lanterns, and moon gazing.

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A Guide To The Mid-Autumn Festival

From paper lanterns and mooncakes to the Legend of Chang’e, learn everything you need to know about Mid-Autumn Festival traditions and activities in this guide. The Mid-Autumn Festival (中秋节), also known as Lantern Festival, Moon Festival or Mooncake Festival, is a holiday that is all about the appreciation of the moon. It falls on the 15th day of the eighth month in the lunar calendar and is celebrated all over Mainland China as well as in Taiwan and Hong Kong, with differing styles of celebration depending on location.

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Mid-Autumn Festival Traditions & Stories

Mid-Autumn Festival, Zhongqiu Jie (中秋节) in Chinese, is also called the Moon Festival or the Mooncake Festival. It is the second most important festival in China after Chinese New Year. It is also celebrated by many other Asian countries, such as Singapore, Malaysia, and the Philippines. In China, it's a reunion time for families, a little like Thanksgiving. Chinese people celebrate it by gathering for dinners, worshiping the moon, lighting paper lanterns, eating mooncakes, etc.