Spring Festival, also known as Chinese New Year, is the most important traditional festival in China. It is celebrated on the first day of the Chinese lunar calendar, which usually falls in late January or early February.
Preparations for the Spring Festival begin several weeks before the holiday. Families clean their homes to sweep out bad luck from the past year and decorate their homes with red lanterns, paper cutouts, and couplets. Everyone wears new clothes and buys food for the special New Year’s eve dinner, or reunion dinner, when family members gather together to enjoy the feast and celebrate the arrival of the new year.
During the Spring Festival, people visit their relatives and friends to exchange greetings and give red envelopes filled with money. Children are the biggest beneficiaries of the red envelopes and they love to collect as many as they can.
The New Year celebrations last for 15 days, and each day has its own significance. The fifth day is known as the Day of Demons and there is a tradition of driving away evil spirits by eating dumplings shaped like money bags. On the eighth day, people celebrate the birthday of all human beings. And on the usual Chinese Lantern Festival, people enjoy lantern displays and eat tangyuan, glutinous rice balls filled with sweet stuffing.
The Spring Festival is a time for people to reflect, recharge and reunite with family, friends, and loved ones. It is also a time to celebrate Chinese culture and traditions, which have a history of over 4,000 years. This cultural richness and diversity are reflected in the custom and activities surrounding the spring festival.
In recent years, the Spring Festival has become more than just a Chinese festival, as it is increasingly recognized as an international event. It is celebrated not only in China but also in many other countries where Chinese communities reside.
As an international language, English has played an important role in promoting the Spring Festival overseas. Through English media, such as TV, movies, and social media, more and more people around the world are becoming familiar with the Chinese Spring Festival and gaining a deeper understanding of its essence.
In conclusion, Spring Festival is a time of joy and festivity, where people come together to share their happiness and blessings. As English speakers, we can join in the festivities and help to spread the tradition and spirit of the Spring Festival to the world.
