Rice Noodle Festival in Hongta District, Yuxi
Rice Noodle Festival in Hongta District, Yuxi
*Date: 10 February-22 March
*Place: Hongta District, Yuxi City
*Main activities include rice noodle banquet, Huadeng opera show, dough figurines making, lion dance, dragon dance, and other cultural performances.
Traditional Han Festival
The Rice Noodle Festival, also known as the “Lantern Festival,” is a traditional Han festival that is popular in the Yuxi region of Yunnan. It is held annually starting from the second day of the lunar calendar’s first month. During this time, people bring the Earth God (土地爷) out of the temple, and each village takes turns hosting and worshipping, praying for a bountiful harvest in the coming year. The day when the Earth God visits a particular village is celebrated as that village’s “Rice Noodle Festival.” The entire village participates in the offerings and joyful celebrations, with each household serving rice noodles to relatives and friends. The welcoming and worship activities reach their climax on the eighth day of the second lunar month when the Earth God is returned to the temple, hence the festival is also called the “Second Month Festival.”
Similar Celebrations in Other Counties
Other counties in Yuxi also have similar god-welcoming ceremonies, but they do not refer to them as the Rice Noodle Festival. Since the founding of the People’s Republic of China, the statues of gods such as the Earth God, City God, and Patriarch have disappeared, but the customs of the Rice Noodle Festival have been preserved and passed down.
Historical Development
Yuxi residents have a deep, inseparable connection with rice noodles. Rice noodle shops are ubiquitous in the streets and alleys, showcasing the various ways rice noodles can be enjoyed to the fullest extent. This longstanding affection for rice noodles has led to the creation of the world’s longest festival—the Rice Noodle Festival.
World’s Longest Festival
- Record Number: 08263-1102-01
- Record Nature: World Record Association World Record
- Record Source: World Record Association Database
- Record Detail: World’s longest festival—China (Yunnan) Yuxi Rice Noodle Cultural Festival
- Certificate Number: 08263-1102-01
- Date of Issue: March 5, 2011
The Yuxi Rice Noodle Cultural Festival is a traditional festival for people of all ethnic groups in Yuxi. It runs from the first day of the lunar new year to March 22, lasting for 81 days, setting a world record for the longest festival duration as recognized by the World Record Association.
History of the Rice Noodle Festival
The Rice Noodle Festival has a history of over 300 years, originally a temple festival for welcoming gods in the new spring. From the first day of the lunar new year to the third day of the third lunar month, different villages and streets take turns to welcome and worship the “Tuzhu” (a local god), sometimes including the City God and Patriarch, to pray for family happiness, good fortune, peace, and a good harvest in the new year.
Yuxi City has four “Tuzhu” statues. The arrival of a “Tuzhu” in a village or street marks the start of that place’s festival. Villagers form lantern teams to welcome the gods and perform traditional dances such as flower lanterns, dragon lanterns, and lion dances, celebrating for two to three days.
Besides sacrificial offerings, there are also performances of flower lanterns and plays. Some villages invite famous performers from other villages for joint performances, while others hire temporary troupes for the event. Each household prepares chicken, meat, wine, and rice noodles, welcoming daughters, sons-in-law, and other relatives to celebrate together.
Due to the custom of eating rice noodles during the festival, it is called the “Rice Noodle Festival.” After the founding of New China, the old customs of welcoming and worshipping the “Tuzhu” gradually disappeared, but the tradition of preparing rice noodles for the festival has persisted, continuing from the first day of the lunar new year to the third day of the third lunar month.
The cost of rice noodles is relatively low, and locals believe that celebrating the Rice Noodle Festival daily will not strain their finances. The types of rice noodles prepared during the festival are diverse, including eel rice noodles, small pot rice noodles, cold rice noodles, mixed sauce rice noodles, chicken rice noodles, shredded chicken rice noodles, braised meat rice noodles, clay pot rice noodles, and rolled noodles (also made from rice).
Current Name of the Festival
Today, the Rice Noodle Festival is also known as the “Reunion Festival,” “Harvest Festival,” or “Bean Husk Festival.” During the Rice Noodle Festival, people bring married daughters and sons-in-law home, invite relatives and friends for gatherings, watch performances, and dance with dragon lanterns, but rice noodles always remain a staple on the banquet table.
In recent years, government departments have organized the traditional Rice Noodle Festival, integrating it with dragon and lion dances, cultural activities, product exhibitions, and tourism. The festival now lasts from January 31 to March 14, spanning one and a half months. It follows traditional customs, with each village taking turns to celebrate the Rice Noodle Festival.
Traditional Han Festival
The Rice Noodle Festival, a traditional Han festival, is popular in the Yuxi region of Yunnan. Held annually starting from the second day of the lunar calendar’s first month, people bring the Earth God from the temple, and each village takes turns hosting and worshipping, praying for a bountiful harvest in the coming year. The day when the Earth God visits a particular village is celebrated as that village’s “Rice Noodle Festival.” The entire village participates in the offerings and joyful celebrations, with each household serving rice noodles to relatives and friends. The welcoming and worship activities reach their climax on the eighth day of the second lunar month when the Earth God is returned to the temple, hence the festival is also called the “Second Month Festival.”
