Discover the 2024 Qixi Festival Singapore. Celebrated on August 10th, it’s also called the Double Seventh Festival or Chinese Valentine’s Day.
The Qixi Festival in Singapore is making a comeback after being nearly forgotten for decades. It was once considered more important than Chinese New Year and was one of the eight main Chinese festivals celebrated in Singapore since the mid-1800s, originating from China. Qixi (七夕节) revolves around people making wishes upon stars in the night sky. Despite its origin story of two lovers, it’s not exactly the Chinese equivalent of Valentine’s Day. Over time, the festival lost its popularity outside China, and many people aren’t aware of its traditions or significance. Let’s explore Qixi, a festival rich in history and culture, and see how it’s celebrated in Singapore.
When is the Qixi Festival Singapore in 2024?
The Qixi Festival happens each year on the seventh day of the seventh month in the lunar calendar, which falls between July 31 and August 29. In 2024, it will be celebrated on August 10. In Singapore, festivities often extend over weekends from July to August.
Qixi Festival in Singapore
Last year, the Qixi Festival returned to Singapore as The Qixi Fest. It lasted for 7 weekends from July to August, ending with a big carnival at Smith Street in Chinatown. The festival featured free boat tours, storytelling sessions, and various hands-on activities like crochet classes and cooking workshops where you could learn about Qixi festival snacks. Some events were free, while others required tickets to participate.
Qixi Festival: Chinese Valentine’s Day/Qiqiao Festival/Double Seventh Festival
The Qixi Festival, also called the Qiqiao Festival or Double Seventh Day, is based on a romantic tale. It’s about Zhinu, a weaver girl who is a goddess’s daughter, and Niulang, a mortal cowherd. They fell in love, got married, and had children before Zhinu’s mother discovered them. Angry that her daughter loved a mortal, Zhinu’s mother took her back to heaven and created the Milky Way to separate them. Moved by their love, magpies formed a bridge so they could meet once a year on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month, celebrated as Qixi Festival.
Qixi Festival Traditions
Traditionally, women used to pray to Zhinu on Qixi Festival day, offering tea and fruits. Single women prayed for a good spouse, while newly married couples prayed for a happy marriage. At night, the celebrations included a needlework contest for women to show their skill in threading needles in dim light.
Qixi Festival Feasting Traditions
During Qixi Festival Singapore, another way people celebrate is by making ‘Qiao Foods’, named after the festival’s alternate name, Qi Qiao Festival. Qiaoguo, also known as Qixi Pastry, is a popular treat during this time. It’s made from flour, sesame, sugar, and honey, and it’s a thin fried pastry that comes in various shapes, sometimes molded with wooden molds. Qixi pastries became well-known during the Song Dynasty and are believed to symbolize the reunion of the star-crossed lovers on the magpie bridge during the Qixi Festival.
Ways to Enjoy the 2024 Qixi Festival Singapore
According to Lynn Wong, director of the Qixi Fest (七夕乞巧嘉年华) festival in Singapore, Qixi Festival isn’t just a Chinese Valentine’s Day. It’s about wishing upon stars at night. Qixi came to Singapore in the 19th century with pioneering women who formed groups like the Seven Sisters’ Associations to celebrate together. One custom is Qiqiao (乞巧), where people wish to become skilled in arts like needlework.
In the past, Qixi was marked by public displays of handicrafts in Chinatown involving Majies (妈姐, domestic servants) from the Shuntak region. These traditions faded in the 1970s as Majies retired. Some see Qixi as a day to spend with partners or even marry, despite superstitions about separation. Many now blend Qixi with Western Valentine’s Day customs, like giving flowers and chocolates.
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