Qingming: Tomb-Sweeping in Chinese Tradition

Qingming is the day many Chinese families sweep their ancestors’ graves. It falls in early spring, and it is both a day of remembrance and a day outdoors. This article explains where it comes from and what families do. Practices vary by region, religion, and family. This article gives general guidance. Families should follow their own traditions and elders.

What is Qingming?

The name means “pure brightness.” Wikipedia says the festival falls on the 15th day after the spring equinox, which is April 4, 5, or 6. It is also a solar term, one of the 24 markers of the traditional Chinese farming calendar. English speakers often call it Tomb-Sweeping Day. It became a public holiday in mainland China in 2008. China Daily calls it the only Chinese public holiday that is also a solar term, and a Chinese government news site notes that the 24 solar terms were added to UNESCO’s list of intangible cultural heritage in 2016.

Where does it come from?

Two older threads are woven together. The solar term was first recorded in the Western Han dynasty, according to China Daily. The other is the Cold Food Festival, a period when people avoided lighting fires and ate cold food.

The usual story says a duke of Jin in the seventh century BC set up the Cold Food Festival to honor Jie Zitui, a loyal follower who died. Wikipedia and a Chinese-culture site tell it this way. A funeral-services company’s page names a different ruler, Duke Mu of Qin, and says he killed Jie by accident. The accounts do not match, and the story is best read as legend.

How did it become a day for tending graves?

Under the Tang dynasty. Wikipedia credits Emperor Xuanzong with its present importance and gives 732 as the first date. Wikipedia’s Cold Food Festival article says Tang rulers limited ancestor rites to the single day that is now Qingming. The funeral-services page says the emperor also wanted to stop wealthy families from holding extravagant ceremonies. A travel guide says the Cold Food Festival was more popular than Qingming before the Sui and Tang dynasties, and that by the Ming and Qing it had almost disappeared.

What do families do?

They visit the grave. Dignity Memorial describes families tidying the site, pulling weeds, and making repairs. They leave fresh flowers, willow branches, which are said to ward off unwelcome ghosts, and food offerings. Some burn joss paper, which is paper money and paper objects meant for the afterlife, along with incense. Some light firecrackers to let ancestors know the family is there. See Why Do We Visit Graves? and Why Do We Put Flowers on Graves?.

What do people eat?

Wikipedia mentions qingtuan, green dumplings of glutinous rice and mugwort or barley grass. Because of the Cold Food Festival, foods are often eaten cold, and Dignity Memorial says they are usually cooked a day or two ahead.

Is it only about death?

No. Qingming is also a spring outing. Dignity Memorial says many families picnic at the cemetery, fly kites, walk, and plant flowers and trees. China Daily describes it as a time for new beginnings as well as old memories. A China Xian Tour guide says tomb-sweeping and spring outings are its two main themes.

Has it also been a day of public mourning?

Sometimes. Wikipedia notes that thousands went to pay respect to Premier Zhou Enlai at the festival after he died in 1976. A language-learning site lists the April 5 Movement among events that took place on Qingming.

Is Qingming observed outside China?

Yes. FamilySearch says it is a holiday in China and other Asian countries. Dignity Memorial says many Asian families in the United States and Canada observe it, some at local cemeteries and some by traveling to China or another homeland.

What do we still not know?

The origin story is a legend, and sources disagree on which ruler it involves. The Chinese government’s news site says the festival has a history of more than 2,500 years, while Wikipedia gives 732 as the first date of the present holiday, so the answer depends on what is counted. Customs also differ across regions and families. A family’s own elders are the best guide.

Where can I learn more?

See Chinese Funeral Traditions, The Hungry Ghost Festival, Obon: Japan’s Festival of the Dead, and Ancestor Veneration Around the World.