春节的简介英语版简短

The Spring Festival, also known as Chinese New Year, is the most important traditional festival in China. It is celebrated by people all around the country, and even by overseas Chinese. This article will discuss the history, customs, food, decorations, and activities related to Spring Festival.

History of Spring Festival

The history of Spring Festival can be traced back to the Shang Dynasty (1600 BC-1046 BC). It was originally a ceremonial sacrifice to gods and ancestors for a good harvest and good luck in the coming year. Later, it became a festival for people to celebrate the end of winter and the beginning of spring.

During the Spring and Autumn Period (770 BC-476 BC), the Duke of Zhou set the fifteenth day of the first lunar month as the Lantern Festival to celebrate the first full moon of the year. Since then, the Spring Festival has been celebrated for a longer period of time, from the first day to the fifteenth day of the first lunar month.

In 1912, the Republic of China adopted the Gregorian calendar, but the tradition of celebrating Spring Festival according to the lunar calendar continued.

Customs of Spring Festival

There are many customs associated with Spring Festival. One of the most important is cleaning the house before the festival begins. This is to sweep away bad luck and make room for good luck to enter the home. Another important custom is putting up Spring Festival couplets, which are two lines of poetry written on red paper and stuck on either side of the front door. They express wishes for good luck, wealth, and happiness for the new year.

Red is a prominent color during Spring Festival. Red decorations are hung up inside and outside the home, as well as on streets and in public places. This is because red is believed to bring good fortune and ward off evil spirits. People also wear red clothes during the festival.

Gift-giving is another important custom during Spring Festival. Children receive lucky money (红包 hóngbāo) from their elders in red envelopes, and people exchange gifts with family and friends. Traditional foods and snacks, such as dumplings, glutinous rice cakes, and tangyuan (sweet glutinous rice balls), are also essential during this time.

Food of Spring Festival

The food eaten during Spring Festival has significant cultural and symbolic meaning. Dumplings (饺子 jiǎozi) symbolize wealth and prosperity, and the shape of the dumplings resembles ancient Chinese gold or silver ingots. Eating fish (鱼 yú) represents surplus and prosperity, and the Chinese word for fish (鱼 yú) sounds like the word for surplus (余 yú). Glutinous rice cakes (年糕 niángāo) symbolize increasing prosperity and achieving higher position or rank each year, and tangyuan symbolize family togetherness.

There are also regional specialties that are eaten during Spring Festival, such as Zongzi (粽子) in the southern region and jiaozi (饺子) in the northern region.

Decorations of Spring Festival

Decorations are an essential part of Spring Festival. Red lanterns, couplets, and paper-cuttings are traditional decorations. Other common decorations include cherry blossoms, kumquats, and Chinese zodiac animals of the new year (2022 is the year of the tiger).

One unique decoration is the upside-down character (倒 rǎn) "福" (fú), which means good fortune or happiness. This is because the character for upside-down (倒 dào) sounds like the word for arrived (到 dào), so the upside-down "福" (fú) represents the arrival of good fortune.

Activities of Spring Festival

There are many traditional activities associated with Spring Festival, such as dragon and lion dances, temple fairs, and visiting relatives and friends. Family reunions are also a vital part of the festival. On New Year's Eve, families gather for a big dinner, which is also known as reunion dinner. Afterwards, they stay up late to welcome the new year and watch the Spring Festival Gala on TV, which is a grand show featuring various performances.

Another unique activity is "setting off firecrackers" (放鞭炮 fàng biān pào), which is a traditional way to celebrate the new year and ward off evil spirits. However, due to safety and environmental concerns, many cities in China have banned setting off fireworks in recent years.

In conclusion, Spring Festival is the most important traditional festival in China. It has a rich history, many customs and traditions, delicious food, beautiful decorations, and a range of fun activities. It is a time for family reunions, expressing good wishes, and celebrating new beginnings.