Deng shou, the head of the lantern fair
The one who heads the second-month lantern fair at Outing: it comes round once in ten years, and the quarter whose turn it is plays host and hangs the lanterns to welcome the gods.
Pronunciation dēng shǒu｜Belief and processions｜One entry in the Chaoshan glossary
What it means
Deng shou carries two senses: the first place of the lantern fair, and the household or the quarter that holds that place. The household whose turn it is must prepare the lanterns, the offerings and the feast, which costs both money and face.
Unlike a festival held every year, the deng shou is a rotating organising unit: one year in ten it comes round, and in the other years there is no such fair.
When you see it
In the second month. Outing in Longhu, Shantou, runs on a ten-year rotation: the quarter whose turn it is hangs out the lanterns, the line passes through the streets with lights in hand, and the frames stand in a row with people walking beneath them.
Words easily confused
Deng shou is the rotating host, the lantern is the object, and Yuanxiao is the fifteenth of the first month as a general festival. One is an organisation, one a thing, one a day; they do not stand in for each other.
Custom of the villages here; this page describes only, and neither endorses superstition nor prescribes behaviour.
Read next: Outing: the lantern fair on its ten-year turn.
Same group: Chaozhou flower lanterns, carrying the gods, the god’s birthday.
Home › Glossary › Belief and processions › The head of the lantern fair
Text on this site is CC BY-SA 4.0; copyright in images is reserved and commercial use requires a separate licence.
Last revised: 4 November 2026