Zongzi: Difference between revisions

As for the origin myth, a fable recounts that the people commemorated the drowning death of Qu Yuan on the [[Double Fifth]] day by casting rice stuffed in bamboo tubes; but the practice changed in the early [[Eastern Han]] dynasty (1st century AD),<ref name=smithsonianmag2009-05-14/>{{efn|The first year of Eastern Han (Year 1 of Jianwu era,25AD25) to be more precise.}} when the ghost of Qu Yuan appeared in a dream to a man named Ou Hui ({{zh|t=區回, 歐回}}) and instructed him to seal the rice packet with [[Melia azedarach|chinaberry]] (or ''Melia'') leaves and bind it with colored string, to repel the dragons (''[[jiaolong]]'') that would otherwise consume them. However, this fable is not attested in contemporary (Han Period) literature, and only known to be recorded centuries later in {{illm|Wu Jun (historian)|zh|吴均|lt=Wu Jun}} ({{zh|p=<!--Wu Jun-->|w=Wu chün|t=呉均|labels=no}}, d. 520)'s ''Xu Qixieji'' ({{zh|p=<!--''Xu Qixieji''-->|w=''Hsü-ch'ih-hsieh-chih''|t=『續齊諧記』|labels=no}}).<ref name=cmlc36/><ref name=chan2009/><ref name=gujin_tushu_jicheng-bk51-xqjj/>{{Refn|Chan (2009) citing Wu Jun ''Xu Qixie'' though not explicitly mentioning ''zong'', only paraphrasing as "rice wrapped with five-colored strings".<ref name=chan2009/>}}

The practice of eating ''zongzi'' on the Double Fifth or [[summer solstice]] is concretely documented in literature from around the late Han (2nd–3rd centuries).{{Refn|group="lower-alpha"|The claim that the ''zongzi'' dates to the [[Spring and Autumn Period]] occurs in a book by a non-expert ({{illm|Dong Qiang|zh|董强 (1967年)}}, a French literature professor and translator), and only an unnamed "Record" is cited as evidence.<ref name=dong/> Other web sources concur with this claim.}} At the end of the [[Eastern Han dynasty]], people made ''zong'', also called ''jiao shu'', lit. "horned/angled millet") by wrapping [[sticky rice]] with the leaves of the ''[[Zizania latifolia]]'' plant ({{zh||t=菰|p=gu}}, a sort of wild rice<ref name=dong/>) and boiling<!-- not steaming--> them in [[lye]] (grass-and-[[wood ash]] water).<ref name=gujin_tushu_jicheng-bk51-fsty/> The name ''jiao shu'' may imply "ox-horn shape",<ref name=dong/> or cone-shape. That the ''zong'' or ''ziao shu'' prepared in this way was eaten on the occasion of the Double Fifth (Duanwu) is documented in works as early as the ''[[Fengsu Tongyi]]'', 195AD 195).<ref name=gujin_tushu_jicheng-bk51-fsty/> These festive rice dumplings are also similarly described in General [[Zhou Chu]] (236–297)'s ''Fengtu Ji'', "Record of Local Folkways"<ref name=jingchu-suishiji/>{{sfnp|Hsu|2004|pp=39–40}}<ref name=chinese_ausp/> Various sources claim that this ''Fengtu Ji'' contains the first documented reference regarding ''zongzi'',<ref name=li2018/><ref name=wu2007/> even though it dates somewhat later than the ''Fengsu Tongyi''.

In the [[Jin dynasty (266–420)|Jin dynasty]] ({{zh|t=晋|labels=no}}, 266–420AD 266–420), ''zongzi'' was officially a [[Dragon Boat Festival]] food.<ref name=xinhuanet/><ref name="Wei">{{Cite book|last=Wei|first=Liming|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/751763923|title=Chinese festivals|date=2011|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-18659-9|edition=Updated|location=Cambridge|pages=38–39|oclc=751763923}}</ref> Anecdotally, an official called {{illm|Lu Xun (Jin dynasty)|zh|卢循|lt=Lu Xun}} from the Jin dynasty once sent ''zongzi'' which used {{illm|yizhiren|zh|益智仁|lt=''yizhiren''}} ({{zh|益智仁}}, the [[fruit]] of ''[[Alpinia]] oxyphylla'' or sharp leaf [[galangal]]) as additional filling; this type of dumpling was then dubbed ''yizhi zong'' ({{zh|益智粽}}, literally "dumplings to increase wisdom").<ref name=xinhuanet/><ref name=dict-bencaogangmu-3/> Later in the [[Northern and Southern dynasties]], mixed ''zongzi'' appeared, the rice was filled with fillings such as meat, chestnuts, [[jujube]]s, red beans,{{Refn|Actually, "chestnut and jujube dates" ({{zh|t=栗棗}}) were already documented in the ''[[Fengsu Tongyi]]'' account of ''zong''.<ref name=gujin_tushu_jicheng-bk51-fsty/>}}<ref name="Wei"/> and they were exchanged as gifts to relatives and friends.<ref name=xinhuanet>{{Cite web|url=http://www.xinhuanet.com/local/2017-05/28/c_1121053724.htm |title=Zongzi fazhanjianshi.. |script-title=zh:粽子发展简史：古称 “角黍” 晋代加入中药材-新华网 |trans-title=Brief developmental history of the zongzi dumpling.. |website=www.xinhuanet.com}}</ref><ref name="Wei"/>

In the [[Northern Song (960–1127)|Northern Song]] dynasty period, the "New augmentation to the ''[[Shuowen Jiezi]]''" ({{zh|t=説文新附|p=Shouwen xinfu}}) glossed ''zong'' as rice with reed leaves wrapped around it.{{efn|The original ''Shuowen Jiezi'' dates to c. 100AD 100, but this character was added to the dictionary in the 10th century. The leaf plant is given as ''lu'' ({{zh|t=蘆|s=芦|p=lu}}), or "reed".}}<ref name=mingpa2020-06-25/> ''Mijiian Zong'' (zongzi with [[Candied fruit|glacé fruit]]) was also popular in the Song dynasty.<ref name="Wei"/> Also during the Song Dynasty, there were many [[preserved fruit]] ''zongzi''. At this time also appeared a [[Chinese pavilion|pavilion]] filled with ''zongzi'' for advertising, which showed that eating ''zongzi'' in the Song dynasty had been very fashionable.