Trivia: Avoiding clashes and scattering eggshells
Lin Mao-hsien, an associate professor in the Department of Taiwanese Languages and Literature at National Taichung University of Education who specializes in Taiwanese folk culture, notes that Qingming is actually one of the 24 traditional solar terms. The custom of tomb sweeping at Qingming dates back to the Han Dynasty.
Influenced by Confucianism’s emphasis on filial piety and remembering one’s roots, this annual pilgrimage is a cornerstone of cultural identity. Historically, different communities observed it on different dates: Hakka began visiting graves from the Lantern Festival onward, people of Quanzhou descent swept their tombs on Qingming itself, and those of Zhangzhou heritage did so on the third day of the third lunar month. Lin humorously remarks out that this staggered schedule was not designed to “avoid traffic jams,” but rather to prevent armed brawls between historically rival groups.
In the final stage of the ritual, duck eggshells are scattered across the graves. Lin explains the linguistic pun behind this practice: in Taiwanese Hokkien, the word for “duck” sounds like “suppress,” while eggs symbolize “rebirth.” Together, they signify leaving bad luck behind and ensuring misfortune is not brought home.
In central and southern Taiwan, eating runbing (a type of spring roll) is another vital Qingming tradition, with roots in the Cold Food Festival of the Tang Dynasty. Once the rituals are concluded, family members chat freely beside the graves and share between them the offerings, such as mugwort rice cakes—a scene that to foreign friends resembles a family picnic in a graveyard.
Lin also describes a nearly forgotten folk custom known in Taiwanese as ip-bōng-kué (distributing the tomb cakes). In the past, families distributed cookies and offerings to the children of poor families living near the cemetery. In the past, this served both to show compassion and to discourage them from vandalizing the gravesites; today it survives simply in a spirit of community sharing.
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The first step of tomb sweeping at Qingming is to thoroughly clean the gravesite. (MOFA file photo)

Tomb sweeping is a poignant time for honoring those who came before us. (MOFA file photo)