HAIKOU /China/, April 26. /TASS/. Authorities in South China's Hainan province held multiple events to mark the Double Third Festival, a date celebrated by the island's national minorities on the third day of the third month on the lunar calendar (this year falling on April 22). According to the Hainan Daily newspaper, a number of provincial and city-level administrative units have officially joined the celebration.

According to the newspaper, on the occasion of the festival, the resort city of Sanya organized a large-scale evening entertainment program on the beach dedicated to the universal solidarity in the formation of the Hainan free trade port. The concert took on the atmosphere of the island's two major minorities, the Li and the Miao. The audience was able to experience the spirit of these indigenous ethnic groups and get a glimpse of their cultural specificities during the performances.

Celebratory events were also held in the Qiongzhong Li and Miao Autonomous County (central part of the province), where exhibitions of intangible heritage items were organized in addition to art performances. Locals and guests of Hainan got acquainted with all kinds of handmade goods. In the course of trade actions, traditional brocade goods were of great interest to tourists, as it is noted.

The 7th Hainan Rosewood Cultural Festival, named after the tropical plant Dalbergia Odorifera (Hainan rosewood) grown in Hainan and actively used in decorative arts, was held in the city of Dongfang on the province's west coast with its drier climate. At this musical event, a number of lyrical folk songs were professionally performed.

In Changjiang Li Autonomous County located north of Dongfang, a concert with dance performances titled "Protecting the Land of the Li Nation" was held. Artists in traditional dress performed many colorful pieces about the life and traditions of the island's autochthonous people.

Originally, the Double Third Festival was dedicated to successful hunting and a rich harvest, according to tradition on this date it is also customary to make romantic acquaintances. In May 2006, China's State Council added the holiday to its intangible heritage list because of the government's active policy to protect and preserve national culture. Previously, it was usually celebrated by people living in central and southern Hainan, where most of the small ethnic groups were concentrated. In recent years, however, it has become popular among other inhabitants of the province and is also of great interest to visiting tourists.