Title: Dragon boat
Content:  typically considered to be evil and demonic, Asian dragons are regarded as wholesome and benevolent, and thus worthy of veneration, not slaying. If rainfall is insufficient, however, drought and famine can result. Veneration of dragons in China seems to be associated with annually ensuring life-giving water and bountiful rice harvests in south-central China. Another ritual called Awakening of the Dragon involves a Taoist priest dotting the bulging eyes of the carved dragon head attached to the boat. Doing so symbolizes the dragon ending its slumber and reenergizing its spirit, or ch'i. In modern dragon boat festivals, a representative can be invited to step forward to dot 
Title: Dragon boat
Content:  eyes on a dragon boat head with a brush dipped in red paint. Not understanding the significance of Duanwu, 19th-century European observers of the racing ritual referred to the associated spectacle as a "dragon boat festival". This is the term that has become known in the West. Dragon boat racing, like Duanwu, is observed and celebrated in many areas of east Asia with a significant population of ethnic Chinese such as Singapore, Malaysia, and the Riau Islands, as well as having been adopted by the Ryukyu Islands since ancient times. The date on which races were held is referred to as the "double fifth", since Duanwu 
Title: Chinese dragon
Content:  At special festivals, especially the Duanwu Festival, dragon boat races are an important part of festivities. Typically, these are boats paddled by a team of up to 20 paddlers with a drummer and steersman. The boats have a carved dragon as the head and tail of the boat. Dragon boat racing is also an important part of celebrations outside of China, such as at Chinese New Year. A similar racing is popular in India in the state of Kerala called Vallamkali and there are records on Chinese traders visiting the seashores of Kerala centuries back (Ibn Batuta).
Title: Paddling
Content:   A dragon boat is a long and narrow human powered boat used in the team paddling sport of dragon boat racing which originated in China. For racing events, dragon boats are not rigged with full decorative Chinese dragon heads and tails and are not required to carry a large drum aboard. The decorative boats are used in ceremonial events. They do howevever use smaller and lighter dragon heads and tails and drum for racing. They are not normally used during practice.
Title: Ottawa Dragon Boat Festival
Content:  The Ottawa Dragon Boat Festival is part of a larger Chinese cultural tradition that goes back 2,400 years. It began on the life-sustaining riverbanks in the valleys of southern China as a fertility rite performed to ensure bountiful crops. The first participants held their celebration on the fifth day of the lunar month of the Chinese calendar. The race was held to avert misfortune and encourage the rains needed for prosperity. The object of their worship was the dragon. Cultural and heritage performers are featured at the festival and are included prominently during the opening and closing festivities. Select performances are designed to honour the traditions and cultural roots of dragon boating as well as the cultural diversity that makes up the National Capital Region.
Title: Houston Dragon Boat Festival
Content:  The Houston Dragon Boat Festival is held in Houston, Texas. The Houston Dragon Boat Festival is a race down Buffalo Bayou, using decorated canoes called "dragon boats".
Title: Canadian International Dragon Boat Festival
Content:  boat festival was created to promote sport and Chinese culture, and a meeting place for Vancouver's culturally diverse population to build intercultural harmony and understanding. Visitors experience a variety of ethnically themed food, cultural entertainment, fine arts and children's programming reflecting Vancouver's cultural diversity, and some of the world's most competitive dragon boat races. The festival has grown to become one of Vancouver's largest family summer events, attracting paddlers ranging in age from high school students to 'grand dragons' in their 80s, and visitors including families of all ages and backgrounds. The festival celebrates community, culture, and competition by connecting visitors with dragon boat racing, cultural displays, and community organizations that support accessible activity and programs.
Title: Ottawa Dragon Boat Festival
Content:  An essential dragon boat tradition, the eye dotting ceremony consists of painting the eyes onto a dragon head to awaken it from sleep and symbolizes the start of the festival.
Title: Dragon boat
Content:  period as the basis for annual water rituals and festival celebrations, and for the traditional veneration of the Chinese dragon water deity. The celebration was an important part of the ancient Chinese agricultural society, celebrating the summer rice planting. Dragon boat racing was historically situated in the Chinese subcontinent's southern-central "rice bowl"; where there were rice paddies, so there were dragon boats, too. Of the twelve animals which make up the traditional Chinese zodiac, only the Dragon is a mythical creature. All the rest are non-mythical animals, yet all twelve of the zodiac creatures were well known to members of ancient Chinese agrarian communities. Dragons were traditionally 
Title: Dragon boat
Content:  A dragon boat is a human-powered watercraft originating from the Pearl River Delta region of China's southern Guangdong Province. These were made of teak, but in other parts of China, different kinds of wood are used. It is one of a family of traditional paddled long boats found throughout Asia, Africa, the Pacific islands, and Puerto Rico. The sport of dragon boat racing has its roots in an ancient folk ritual of contending villagers, which dates back 2000 years throughout southern China, and even further to the original games of Olympia in ancient Greece. Both dragon boat racing and the ancient Olympiad included aspects of religious observances and community celebrations, along with competitions. Dragon boat racing has been a traditional Chinese paddled 

Question: what is the meaning of the dragon boat festival?
Answer: commemorating fealty and filial piety.