The Qixi Festival, also known as the the Qiqiao Festival, is a Chinese festival that celebrates the annual meeting of the Niulang and Zhinü in Chinese mythology. It falls on the seventh day of the 7th month on the Chinese calendar. It is sometimes called the Double Seventh Festival, the Chinese Valentine's Day.
Legends
The festival originated from the romantic legend of two lovers, Niulang and Zhinü, who were the cowherd and the weaver maid, respectively. It has been celebrated in the Qixi Festival since the Han Dynasty.
Traditions
In some parts of Shandong Province, young women offer fruit and pastries to pray for a bright mind. In other regions, seven close friends put a needle, a copper coin and a red date into three separate dumplings to represent perfect needlework skills, good fortune and an early marriage.