During the Spring Festival, a variety of traditional folk activities were held and rich flavors of the Chinese Lunar New Year were created in Jinjiang, all of which also expressed people's expectations for a better life.

Today, let's review the bustling scenes of traditional folk customs and recollect the distinctive flavors of Jinjiang New Year.

Torch Festival

On the evening of January 30th, the arch of Shanqian Village of Yonghe Town was lighted with lanterns in a festive and peaceful mood. Torch Festival, which had been suspended for three years due to the pandemic, was back!

At 7:40 that night, with the kindling lit in the brazier, the whole celebration was sparked! At 8:00, the "fire dragon" wound along the 3.5km road around Shanqian Village. Along the way, in the fanfare of gongs, drums and firecrackers, people wished each other good luck in the coming new year.

"Everyone in the village comes to join the torch festival, and about 2000 people have participated this year." Cai Wenda, the secretary general of the Shanqian Village Elderly Association, said that the torch festival, which means praying for good luck and harvest, has been passed down in Shanqian for more than 300 years. Nowadays, making torches has become a skill of every household in the village. In recent years, the festival has been scheduled to be held on the ninth day of the first month of each lunar year.

Shanqian Village Torch Festival is the only torch festival in Jinjiang that retains traditional customs. It is also rare among Han nationality in China. In 2020, Shanqian Village Torch Festival was selected into the list of the sixth batch of municipal intangible cultural heritage representative projects in Quanzhou.

Palace Lantern Counting

February 5th witnessed a festive activity, palace lantern counting, in Fujian-Taiwan Dongshi Lantern Folk Institute. It has been 15 years since this folk custom was enlisted in the national intangible cultural heritage. 19 people from Taiwan who now work in Xiamen came to Dongshi to celebrate the Lantern Festival.

In the institute, there were not only 19 palace lanterns brought by the newly married couples, but many others sent from Taipei, Lugang, and Jinhu, wishing a flourishing population in both the mainland and Taiwan.

Zhang Yongyu, the leader of the compatriots from Taiwan, said, "Palace lantern counting is a common folk activity shared both in Taiwan and Fujian Province and it serves as a bond to carry on the cross-straits communication. Although the activity was suspended for three years because of the pandemic, this bond and affection were never damaged. And we believe there will be more people returning to Dongshi to celebrate this grand traditional event."

Incense Dragon Dance

On the night of February 5th, the incense dragon dance, a thousand-year heritage, attracted a large audience in Xingcuo Village of Dongshi Town, creating a festive ambience.

With its heads shaking and its tails wagging, the dragon moved up and down, twisting its body occasionally. The 20-meter dazzlingly swung incense dragon received constant applause from the audience.

Cai Wendun, an inheritor of incense dragon dance performance, told our journalist that the incense dragon, a constitution of head, body, tail and lamp, was mainly bound with rice straws, hemp ropes and iron wire.

In 2010, incense dragon dance was enrolled in Jinjiang’s 3rd intangible cultural heritage list. In 2013, it was on the list of Quanzhou’s municipal intangible cultural heritage. Now, the traditional folk performance of Dongshi incense dragon dance is applying to be enlisted in Fujian’s provincial intangible cultural heritage catalogue.

Tower Burning

Burning brick towers is a folk prayer event with Minnan characteristics. At the auspicious moment of the new year’s arrival, people will light brick towers to pray for good luck and prosperity in the coming year.

On the first, the fifth and the fifteenth days of the first lunar month, the tower burning activities were held three times in the traditional village of Wulin, Jinjiang. During the events, the igniter walked to the tower with a torch and lit the wood inside. In a flash, the fire burst to the top of the tower, illuminating the night sky. As the flame grew fiercer and the tower turned redder, the igniter grabbed a handful of crude salt and threw it to the tower, making loud noise and a spectacular scene. The flare lit up the night sky, warmed people’s hearts, and ignited the hope and prosperity in the new year.

Touring the village with lanterns and distributing candles

On the evening of February 5th, the Lantern Festival folk activity of village tour and candle-distributing was held in Anqian Village, Anhai Town.

After dinner, each of the children in Anqian Village lit a lantern and, accompanied by their parents, toured the village with the lanterns in hand. The candle lights shone like a dragon wandering from one house to another. When they came to the home of the newlyweds Shen Shifa and Xu Qiuge, all together the children chanted some auspicious sayings in the Minnan dialect. The couple and their family took out candies, cookies, candles and distributed them to the children to express gratitude.

That night, 10 couples who had just got married in 2022 in Anqian Village received this special blessing.

With a history of over 200 years, the folk custom of village tour and candle-distributing in Anqian Village was selected as a representative project of Jinjiang municipal intangible cultural heritage last year.

Lantern Parade

At 8 p.m. of February 5th, a festive activity of lantern parade was underway on the streets in the ancient town of Anhai.

The procession started off at 8 o’clock in the evening from Baita Square, marched along Sanli Street and concluded in Qiyun Temple. The participants, including grey-haired elders and babbling toddlers, walked along with their lanterns, whose light brightened the ancient streets and alleys of Anhai Town.

"It’s a great and jolly lantern parade, which reminded me of the happy spring festivals in my childhood," said Huang Yan, who joined the group with her kid that night.

Lantern Show

During the Lantern Festival, beautiful lanterns of various kinds lit up the night view in Wudianshi traditional block. Citizens and tourists, carrying lanterns and listening to Nanyin music, all enjoyed a special festival, even in raincoats or with umbrellas.

Huang Songlin, a local citizen, hurried to see the lantern show with his family after dinner. "Every Lantern Festival I always bring my family here to enjoy the lanterns and to feel the cheerful festival atmosphere," he said. "This year, various activities like the light show and Nanyin really bring the festive air to the highest."

Attacking Firecrackers Castle

On the evening of February 5th, San’ou Village of Yinglin Town held the game of "attacking firecrackers castle" for the first time, which attracted enthusiastic attention from all.

The sound of crackling kept going on, which was the "bugle" of the "gunners" to attack the castle hung high up at the end of a pole. The "gunners" lit their prepared firecrackers and threw them towards the castle to see who had the skill or luck to ignite the powder inside.

Li Dexian, a former athlete, became the first "gunner" to detonate the castle with his excellent eyesight and hand power. "I have a very good time. It reminds me of the Spring Festival when I was a child," he said.