The Seventh Day of the Seventh Month in lunar calendar is Chinese Valentine’s Day, called 七夕(qīxī) Qi Xi (literally “The Night of Sevens”). Girls on this day look at the stars to pray for a happy marriage.
Chinese Valentine’s Day originated from a famous and beautiful love story. A young man named 牛郎(Niú Láng) Niu Lang whose parents died early on lived with his brother. But his brother’s wife treated him badly. One day, he was pasturing his cattle on the hill, and a young lady named 织女(Zhī Nŭ) Zhi Nv from heaven played in river. So Niu Lang got to know Zhi Nv and they fell in love. Quickly, they got married, but the King and Queen of heaven got to know what happened and forced them to separate by the galaxy. But their true love moved thousands of magpies flied to build a bridge on every July 7 in the lunar calendar, so that the couple could meet each other every year.
In China, people celebrated the festival differently areas various regions. In China’s southwestern region, girls paint fingernails, hoping for their Mr. Rights. Women in Hunan and Zhejiang province wash their hairs in order to gain goddess’s protection. One famous activity is to eat 巧果(qiǎoguŏ).
情人节(qíngrénjié): n Chinese Valentine’s Day
七夕(qīxī): n the seventh day of the seventh month in the lunar calendar
牛郎(niúláng): n a name of herd boy
织女(zhīnŭ): n a name of weaver girl
巧果(qiǎoguŏ): n a kind of cake made of wheat and honey