中国传统节日英文介绍

2021年1月25日发(作者：喷水)
中国传统节日英文介绍

Chinese New Year
is the most important of the traditional Chinese holidays. In China, it is known
as
春节
, since the spring season in
Chinese calendar starts with lichun, the first solar term in a Chinese calendar year. It marks the
end of the winter season, analogous to the Western Carnival. The festival begins on the first day
of the first month (
正月
) in the traditional Chinese calendar and ends with Lantern Festival which
is on the 15th day. Chinese New Year's Eve, a day where Chinese families gather for their annual
reunion
dinner,
is
known
as
Ch
ú
x
ī

(
除夕
)
or

of
the
Passing
Year.”
Because
the
Chinese
calendar is lunisolar, the Chinese New Year is often referred to as the

Chinese New Year is the longest and most important festivity in the Chinese calendar. The origin
of Chinese New Year is itself centuries old and gains significance because of several myths and
traditions.
Chinese
New
Year
is
celebrated
in
countries
and
territories
with
significant
Chinese
populations, such as Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia,
Malaysia, Mauritius, Philippines, Vietnam, and also in Chinatowns elsewhere. Chinese New Year
is
considered
a
major
holiday
for
the
Chinese
and
has
had
influence
on
the
lunar
new
year
celebrations of its geographic neighbors.

Within
China,
regional
customs
and
traditions
concerning
the
celebration
of
the
Chinese
new
year vary widely. People will pour out their money to buy presents, decoration, material, food,
and clothing. It is also traditional for every family to thoroughly cleanse the house, in order to
sweep away any ill
-
fortune and to make way for good incoming luck. Windows and doors will be
decorated
with
red
colour
paper
-
cuts
and
couplets
with
popular
themes
of

fortune
or

families. Food will include such items as pigs, ducks, chicken and sweet delicacies. The family will
end
the
night
with
firecrackers.
Early
the
next
morning,
children
will
greet
their
parents
by
wishing
them
a
healthy
and
happy
new
year,
and
receive
money
in
red
paper
envelopes.
The
Chinese
New
Year
tradition
is
to
reconcile,
forget
all
grudges
and
sincerely
wish
peace
and
happiness for everyone.

Although the Chinese calendar traditionally does not use continuously numbered years, outside
China
its
years
are
often
numbered
from
the
reign
of
the
Yellow
Emperor.
But
at
least
three
different years numbered 1 are now used by various scholars, making the year beginning in AD
2012 the
。

The
Lantern Festival
（元宵节）

is a festival celebrated on the fifteenth day of the first month in
the
lunisolar
year
in
the
Chinese
calendar,
the
last
day
of
the
lunisolar
Chinese
New
Year
celebration.
It
is
not
to
be
confused
with
the
Mid
-
Autumn
Festival,
which
is
sometimes
also
known as the
Festival,
children
go
out
at
night
to
temples
carrying
paper
lanterns
and
solve
riddles
on
the
lanterns (
猜灯谜
). It officially ends the Chinese New Year celebrations.

In ancient times, the lanterns were fairly simple, for only the emperor and noblemen had large
ornate ones; in modern times, lanterns have been embellished with many complex designs. For
example, lanterns are now often made in shapes of animals.

The first month of the Chinese calendar is called yuan month, and in ancient times people called
night
xiao;
therefore,
the
day
is
called
Yuan
Xiao
Festival
in
mainland
China
and
Taiwan.
The
fifteenth day is the first night one can see a full moon in that lunar year. According to Chinese
tradition, at the very beginning of a new year, when there is a bright full moon hanging in the sky,
there should be thousands of colorful lanterns hung out for people to appreciate. At this time,
people
will
try
to
solve
puzzles
on
lanterns,
eat
yuanxiao
('
元宵
')
(a
glutinous
rice
ball,
also
known as simplified Chinese:
汤圆
) and enjoy a family reunion.

Qingming Festival(
清明节
) is when Chinese people visit the columbaria, graves or burial grounds
to pray to their ancestors.

The Qingming Festival is an opportunity for celebrants to remember and honour their ancestors
at
grave
sites.
Young
and
old
pray
before
the ancestors,
sweep
the
tombs
and
offer
food,
tea,
wine, chopsticks, joss paper, and/or libations to the ancestors. The rites have a long tradition in
Asia, especially among farmers. Some people carry willow branches with them on Qingming or
put willow branches on their gates and/or front doors. They believe that willow branches help
ward off the evil spirit that wanders on Qingming.

On Qingming, people go on family outings, start the spring plowing, sing, and dance. Qingming is
also a time when young couples traditionally start courting. Another popular thing to do is to fly
kites in the shapes of animals or characters from Chinese opera. Another common practice is to
carry flowers instead of burning paper, incense, or firecrackers.

Colored papers placed on a grave during Qingming Festival, Bukit Brown Cemetery, Singapore

Despite having no official status, the overseas Chinese communities in Southeast Asian nations,
such
as
those
in
Singapore
and
Malaysia,
take
this
festival
seriously
and
observe
its
traditions
faithfully.
Some
Qingming
rituals
and
ancestral
veneration
decorum
observed
by
the
oversea
Chinese in Malaysia and Singapore can be dated back to Ming and Qing dynasties, as the oversea
communities
were
not
affected
by
the
Cultural
Revolution
in
Mainland
China.
Qingming
in
Malaysia is an elaborate family function or a clan feast (usually organized by the respective clan
association)
to
commemorate
and
honour
recently
deceased
relatives
at
their
grave
sites
and
distant ancestors from China at home altars, clan temples or makeshift altars in Buddhist or Taoist
temples.
For
the
oversea
Chinese
community,
the
Qingming
festival
is
very
much
a
family
celebration and, at the same time, a family obligation. They see this festival as a time of reflection
and to honour and give thanks to their forefathers. Overseas Chinese normally visit the graves of
their
recently
deceased
relatives
on
the
nearest
weekend
to
the
actual
date.
According
to
the
ancient
custom,
grave
site
veneration
is
only
feasible
ten
days
before
and
after
the
Qingming
Festival. If the visit is not on the actual date, normally veneration before Qingming is encouraged.
The Qingming Festival in Malaysia and Singapore normally starts early in the morning by paying
respect to distant ancestors from China at home altars. This is followed by visiting the graves of
close relatives in the country. Some follow the concept of filial piety to the extent of visiting the
graves of their ancestors in mainland China. Traditionally, the family will burn spirit money and
paper
replicas
of
material
goods
such
as
cars,
homes,
phones
and
paper
servants.
In
Chinese
culture,
it
is
believed
that
people
still
need
all
of
those
things
in
the
afterlife.
Then
family
members
take
turns
to
kowtow
three
to
nine
times
(depending
on
the
family
adherence
to
traditional values) before the tomb of the ancestors. The Kowtowing ritual in front of the grave is
performed in the order of patriarchal seniority within the family. After the ancestor worship at
the grave site, the whole family or the whole clan feast on the food and drink they brought for
the worship either at the site or in nearby gardens in the memorial park, signifying family reunion
with the ancestors. Another ritual related to the festival is the cockfight, as well as being available
within
that
historic
and
cultural
context
at
Kaifeng
Millennium
City
Park
(Qingming
Riverside
Landscape Garden).