扫尘 Sweeping the Dust
“Dust” is homophonic with "chen”（尘）in Chinese， which means old and past. In this way， "sweeping the dust” before the Spring Festival means a thorough cleaning of houses to sweep away bad luck in the past year. This custom shows a good wish of putting away old things to welcome a new life. In a word， just before the Spring Festival comes， every household will give a thorough cleaning to bid farewell to the old year and usher in the new.
贴春联 Pasting Spring Couplets
“The Spring Couplet”， also called "couplet” and "a pair of antithetical phrases”， is a special form of literature in China. The Spring Couplet is composed of two antithetical sentences on both sides of the door and a horizontal scroll bearing an inscription， usually an auspicious phrase， above the gate. The sentence pasting on the right side of the door is called the first line of the couplet and the one on the left the second line. On the eve of the Spring Festival， every household will paste on doors a spring couplet written on red paper to give a happy and prosperous atmosphere of the Festival. In the past， the Chinese usually wrote their own spring couplet with a brush or asked others to do for them， while nowadays， it is common for people to buy the printed spring couplet in the market.
贴窗花和“福”字 Pasting Paper-cuts and "Up-sided Fu”
Paper-cuts， usually with auspicious patterns， give a happy and prosperous atmosphere of the Festival and express the good wishes of Chinese people looking forward to a good life. In addition to pasting paper-cuts on windows， it is common for Chinese to paste the character "fu（福）”， big and small， on walls， doors and doorposts around the houses. "Fu（福）” shows people’s yearning toward a good life. Some people even invert the character "fu（福）” to signify that blessing has arrived because "inverted” is a homonym for "arrive” in Chinese. Now many kinds of paper-cuts and "fu（福）” can be seen in the market before the Festival.
守岁 Staying Up Late on New Year‘s Eve
The tradition of staying up late to see New Year in originated from an interesting folk tale. In ancient China there lived a monster named Year， who was very ferocious. Year always went out from its burrow on New Year’s Eve to devour people. Therefore， on every New Year’s Eve， every household would have supper together. After dinner， no one dared go to sleep and all the family members would sit together， chatting and emboldening each other. Gradually the habit of staying up late on New Year’s Eve is formed. Thus in China， "celebrating the Spring Festival” is also called "passing over the year （guo nian）”。 However， now there are less and less people in cities who will stay up late to see New Year in.
贴年画 Pasting New Year Prints
The custom of pasting New Year Prints originated from the tradition of placing Door Gods on the external doors of houses. With the creation of board carvings， New Year paintings cover a wide range of subjects. The most famous ones are Door Gods， Surplus Year after Year， Three Gods of Blessing， Salary and Longevity， An Abundant Harvest of Crops， Thriving Domestic Animals and Celebrating Spring. Four producing areas of New Year Print are Tɑohuɑwu of Suzhou， Yɑngliuqing of Tianjin， Wuqiɑng of Hebei and Weifang of Shangdong. Now the tradition of pasting New Year paintings is still kept in rural China， while it is seldom followed in cities.
吃饺子 Having Jiaozi
On New Year’s Eve， the whole family will sit together to make jiaozi and celebrate the Spring Festival. The shape of jiaozi is like gold ingot from ancient China. So people eat them and wish for money and treasure. The tradition of having jiaozi is very important during the Spring Festival. You cannot have a complete Spring Festival without having jiaozi. （See page 82 for more information about "jiaozi”）
看春节联欢晚会 The CCTV New Year‘s Gala
The New Year’s Gala is a variety show held by China Central Television （CCTV） since 1983. For every year since then at the turn of the Lunar New Year， the program begins at 8:00PM and lasts five or six hours. It brings laughter to billions of people， creates many popular words and produces lots of TV phenomena meriting attention. For over twenty years， its value has gone far beyond a variety show. It is essential entertainment for the Chinese both at home and abroad. Many Chinese would like to watch the gala while having the dinner on New Year’s Eve.
放鞭炮 Setting off Firecrackers
The firecracker is a unique product in China. In ancient China， the sound of burning bamboo tubes was used to scare away wild animals and evil spirits. With the invention of the gunpowder， "firecracker” is also called "鞭炮biānpào” （“炮” in Chinese means gun） and used to foster a joyful atmosphere. The first thing every Chinese household does is to set off firecrackers and fireworks， which are meant to bid farewell to the old year and usher in the new. In the past few years， such an activity was completely or partially forbidden in big cities including Beijing due to fire and personal casualty caused by burning firecrackers. However， some Chinese thought that a Spring Festival without firecrackers was not lively enough and they burned firecrackers by stealth. So in recent years， the ban was canceled again. This shows that burning firecrackers is a very important activity during the Spring Festival.
拜年和压岁钱 New Year‘s Visit and Gift Money
On the first day of the Chinese lunar year， everybody puts on their best clothes and pays ceremonial calls on their relatives and friends， wishing them all the luck in the coming year. Juniors will greet seniors， wishing them health and longevity， while seniors will give juniors some gift money as a wish for their safety in the coming year. When friends meet， they will wish each other happiness and prosperity with a big smile. With the development of the new technology， there is a change on the way of giving New Years greetings. In recent year， it is common to send New Years greetings by such modern means of communication as telephones， emails and text messages.
逛庙会 Temple Fair
Temple fair， usually held outside temples， is a kind of folk custom in China. During the Spring Festival， temple fair is one of the most important activities， in which there are such performances as acrobatics and Wushu， numerous kinds of local snacks and many kinds of things for everyday life. In recent years， the temple fair has become a place for people to appreciate the traditional art and experience the traditional life.
Festival Greetings
Traditional Festival Greetings:
恭贺新禧 | Happy New Year
吉祥如意 | Everything Goes Well
恭喜发财 | Wishing You Prosperity
年年有余 | Surplus Year after Year
岁岁平安 | Peace All Year Round
新春大吉 | Good Luck in the New Year
In the past two years， it has become a vogue for relatives and friends to send short messages to greet each other during the Spring Festival. With best wishes， the warm greetings of text messages give a happy and joyful atmosphere of the Festival.
Festival Greetings via Text Message
① 送你一件外套，前面是平安，后面是幸福，领子是吉祥，袖子是如意，扣子是快乐，口袋里满是温暖，穿上吧，让它伴你每一天！新春快乐！
I will give you a coat as a present. The front is safety， the back happiness， the collar auspiciousness， the sleeves satisfaction， the buttons enjoyment and the pockets warmness. Wear every day. Wish you a happy New Year.
② 新年到了，不打算送给你太多，只给你五千万：千万要快乐！千万要健康！千万要平安！千万要知足！千万不要忘记我！
As the New Year comes， I will only give you five "do’s” as a present. Do be merry！ Do be healthy！ Do be safe！ Do be satisfied！ Do remember me！
介绍中国新年除夕习俗的英语文章
Before New Year‘s Eve
The celebration actually starts on New Year‘s Eve with the
family reunion dinner. By New Year‘s Eve， you should have
done the following:
Clean the entire home to get rid of all the things that are
associated with the old year.
Put away all brooms and brushes.
Pay all your debts.
Resolve differences with family members， friends， neighbors and business associates.
Buy the following:
Red money envelopes，
Oranges and/or tangerines，
Fill a "Cheun hup（a circular red tray separated in eight compartments） with melon seedslotuschocolate coinsnuts etc.
Flowers （especially plum blossoms， peach blossoms， water lilies），
A new set of clothes and shoes for children， preferably something red or orange.
Get new dollar bills from the bank. Insert the new dollar bills into the red envelopes. Now the red envelope is called a lai see or lucky money envelope.
On New Year‘s Eve
Get together with close family members （not including married daughters and their families） for the "reunion” dinner.
Pay respect to ancestors and household gods. Acknowledge the presence of ancestors because they are responsible for the fortunes of future generations.
Open every door and window in your home at midnight to let go of the old year.
On New Year‘s Day
Decorate your home with symbols of good fortune. Here are some suggestions:
Colors: Bright red （happiness）； gold/orange （wealth &； happiness）。
Fruits: Oranges and tangerines （good health &； long life）； tangerines with leaves intact （long lasting relationships； being fruitful and multiply）； persimmons （happiness and wealth）。
“Chuen Hup” circular candy tray （candy for sweet and circular for togetherness and continuity）。
Flowers: If flowers bloom on New Year‘s Day， it will be a prosperous year.
Red banners or couplets with New Year wishes and symbols of good fortune in gold.
中国传统节日中英对照：春节
春节，是农历正月初一，又叫阴历年，俗称“过年”。这是我国民间最隆重、最热闹的一个传统节日。春节的历史很悠久，它起源于殷商时期年头岁尾的祭神祭祖活动。按照我国农历，正月初一古称元日、元辰、元正、元朔、元旦等，俗称年初一，到了民国时期，改用公历，公历的一月一日称为元旦，把农历的一月一日叫春节。
春节到了，意味着春天将要来临，万象复苏草木更新，新一轮播种和收获季节又要开始。人们刚刚度过冰天雪地草木凋零的漫漫寒冬，早就盼望着春暖花开的日子，当新春到来之际，自然要充满喜悦载歌载舞地迎接这个节日。 千百年来，人们使年俗庆祝活动变得异常丰富多彩，每年从农历腊月二十三日起到年三十，民间把这段时间叫做“迎春日”，也叫“扫尘日”，在春节前扫尘搞卫生，是我国人民素有的传统习惯。
然后就是家家户户准备年货，节前十天左右，人们就开始忙于采购物品，年货包括鸡鸭鱼肉、茶酒油酱、南北炒货、糖饵果品，都要采买充足，还要准备一些过年时走亲访友时赠送的礼品，小孩子要添置新衣新帽，准备过年时穿。
在节前要在住宅的大门上粘贴红纸黄字的新年寄语，也就是用红纸写成的春联。屋里张贴色彩鲜艳寓意吉祥的年画，心灵手巧的姑娘们剪出美丽的窗花贴在窗户上，门前挂大红灯笼或贴福字及财神、门神像等，福字还可以倒贴，路人一念福倒了，也就是福气到了，所有这些活动都是要为节日增添足够的喜庆气氛。
春节的另一名称叫过年。在过去的传说中，年是一种为人们带来坏运气的想象中的动物。年一来。树木凋蔽，百草不生；年一过，万物生长，鲜花遍地。年如何才能过去呢？需用鞭炮轰 ，于是有了燃鞭炮的习俗，这其实也是烘托热闹场面的又一种方式。
春节是个欢乐祥和的节日，也是亲人团聚的日子，离家在外的孩子在过春节时都要回家欢聚。过年的前一夜，就是旧年的腊月三十夜，也叫除夕，又叫团圆夜，在这新旧交替的时候，守岁是最重要的年俗活动之一，除夕晚上，全家老小都一起熬年守岁，欢聚酣饮，共享天伦之乐，北方地区在除夕有吃饺子的习俗，饺子的作法是先和面，和字就是合；饺子的饺和交谐音，合和交有相聚之意，又取更岁交子之意。在南方有过年吃年糕的习惯，甜甜的粘粘的年糕，象征新一年生活甜蜜蜜，步步高。 待第一声鸡啼响起，或是新年的钟声敲过，街上鞭炮齐鸣，响声此起彼伏，家家喜气洋洋，新的一年开始了，男女老少都穿着节日盛装，先给家族中的长者拜年祝寿，节中还有给儿童压岁钱，吃团年饭，初二、三就开始走亲戚看朋友，相互拜年，道贺祝福，说些恭贺新喜、恭喜发财、恭喜、过年好等话，祭祖等活动。
节日的热烈气氛不仅洋溢在各家各户，也充满各地的大街小巷，一些地方的街市上还有舞狮子，耍龙灯，演社火，游花市，逛庙会等习俗。这期间花灯满城，游人满街，热闹非凡，盛况空前，直要闹到正月十五元宵节过后，春节才算真正结束了。
春节是汉族最重要的节日，但是满、蒙古，瑶、壮、白、高山、赫哲、哈尼、达斡尔、侗、黎等十几个少数民族也有过春节的习俗，只是过节的形式更有自己的民族特色，更蕴味无穷。
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