China's annual festivals and related brief introduction.

Time:/kloc-Lunar New Year's Eve in February.

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New Year's Eve is called New Year's Eve. In addition, the original meaning is "go" and extended to "change" (alternate); The original meaning of the word "evening" is "sunset" and it is extended to "night". Therefore, New Year's Eve means "get rid of the old year here and get a new year tomorrow". "Except" means to get rid of the old cloth and make a new one.

origin

New Year's Eve originated from the "expulsion" in the pre-Qin period. According to Lu's Spring and Autumn Annals and Dong Jiji, on the day before the New Year, the ancients used drums to drive away the "ghost of plague" so that there would be no disease or disaster in the coming year. This is the origin of "New Year's Eve" Festival.

Another name

In ancient times, "New Year's Eve" had other names, such as "except night", "except night", "except year" and "except night". Although there are many names, they always mean to send the old to welcome the new and eliminate disasters and diseases.

the Spring Festival; Chinese New Year

Spring Festival is the first year of the lunar calendar, commonly known as "Chinese New Year".

origin

The origin of the Spring Festival has a history of about 4000 years in China. This is the most lively and grand traditional festival in China. The ancient Spring Festival refers to the "beginning of spring" season in the twenty-four solar terms of the lunar calendar. It was not until the Southern and Northern Dynasties that the Spring Festival was changed to the end of the year, generally referring to the whole spring. At this time, spring returns to the earth and everything is renewed. People regard it as the beginning of a new year. In the early years of the Republic of China after the Revolution of 1911, after the lunar calendar was changed to the Gregorian calendar, the first day of the first month was designated as the Spring Festival. It was not until1September 27th, 949 that the China People's Political Consultative Conference officially designated the New Year on the first day of the first month as the "Spring Festival", so many people still call it the Spring Festival.

Related legends

People often call celebrating the Spring Festival "Chinese New Year", but the original meaning of "Year" is fundamentally different from today. It is said that in ancient times, there was one of the fiercest beasts in the world called Nian. It is bigger than a camel. Run faster than the wind and roar louder than thunder. Once out, people eat people, animals are injured, and people's lives are seriously threatened. In order to punish Nian, the gods locked it in the mountains and allowed it to come out only once a year. In the long-term practice, people find that Nian has three fears-fear of red, fear of noise and fear of fire. So, one year on the thirtieth night of the twelfth lunar month, everyone posted red paper at the door, kept beating gongs and drums and setting off firecrackers, and lit lights all night in the house at night. Take a look at the evening of "Nian", and every family is brightly lit; Hearing this, the sound of shooting was everywhere, scaring it into the village. During the day, it sneaked down the mountain again, only to find that the doors of every household were still red and drums were everywhere, which scared it to turn around and run back. From then on, Nian never came again. It is said that he starved to death in the deep forest. Later, people turned the prevention of "Year" and "Drive Year" into a safe and steady New Year. "Nian" is gone, but the custom of Chinese New Year is still there. Bright red Spring Festival couplets, brilliant lights, crisp firecrackers, loud gongs and drums, year after year.

Applicable area

The Spring Festival is the most important festival of the Han nationality, but more than a dozen ethnic minorities, such as Manchu, Mongolian, Yao, Zhuang, Bai, Gaoshan, Hezhe, Hani, Daur, Dong and Li, have also had the custom of the Spring Festival, but the form of the festival has its own national characteristics and is more meaningful.

custom

Set off firecrackers, put up Spring Festival couplets and celebrate the New Year.

develop

The concepts of Spring Festival and New Year originally came from agriculture. In ancient times, people called the growth cycle of the valley "year". Hebe: "in the year, the grain is ripe." . During the Xia and Shang Dynasties, the Xia calendar came into being, with the full and short moon as the month, and a year was divided into twelve months. Every month, the day when the moon can't be seen is the new moon, and the first day of the first month is called the beginning of a year, also known as the year. The title of the year began in the Zhou Dynasty and was officially set in the Western Han Dynasty, which continues to this day. However, in ancient times, the first day of the first month was called "New Year's Day". Until the victory of the Revolution of 1911 in modern China, in order to conform to the farming season and facilitate statistics, the Nanjing Provisional Government stipulated that the people should use the summer calendar, and the institutions, factories, mines, schools and organizations should adopt the solar calendar, with the Gregorian calendar 1 month 1 day as New Year's Day and the first month of the lunar calendar 1 day as the Spring Festival.

Relationship between New Year's Day and Spring Festival

1949 On September 27th, New China was founded. At the first plenary session of the China People's Political Consultative Conference, the international use of the Gregorian calendar era was adopted, and the Gregorian calendar 1 month 1 day was designated as New Year's Day, commonly known as the Gregorian calendar year. The first day of the first lunar month is usually around beginning of spring, so the first day of the first lunar month is designated as the Spring Festival, commonly known as the Lunar New Year. In the traditional sense, the Spring Festival refers to the La Worship sacrificial ceremony from the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month or the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month to the 15th day of the first lunar month, with New Year's Eve and the first day of the first lunar month as the climax. The Spring Festival is a traditional festival, and the Han nationality and most ethnic minorities in China will hold various celebrations, most of which are mainly to offer sacrifices to the gods and buddhas, ancestors, bid farewell to the old year and welcome the new year, and pray for a bumper harvest. The forms of activities are rich and colorful, with strong national characteristics.

[Edit this paragraph] Lantern Festival

Time: 15th day of the first lunar month English: Lantern Festival is also called "Shangyuan Festival", that is, 15th day of the first lunar month. This is an important traditional festival in China. In ancient books, this day is called Shangyuan, and its night is called Yuanye, Yuanxi or Yuanxiao. The name Yuanxiao has been used ever since. Customs Because of the custom of putting lanterns and watching lanterns in the Lantern Festival, people also call it the Lantern Festival. In addition, there are customs such as eating Yuanxiao, walking on stilts and riddles. The evolution of ancient calendars in China is closely related to the phases of the moon. On the fifteenth day of the first month, people ushered in the first full moon night of the year, which is naturally regarded as an auspicious day. As early as the Han Dynasty, the fifteenth day of the first month has been regarded as a day of offering sacrifices to gods and praying for blessings. Later, the ancients called the fifteenth day of the first month Shangyuan, the fifteenth day of July Zhongyuan and the fifteenth day of October Xia Yuan. At the latest, in the early Southern and Northern Dynasties, Sanyuan was the day when grand ceremonies were held. Of the three elements, Shangyuan is the most valued. Later, the celebrations in the Central Plains and Xia Yuan were gradually abolished, but Shangyuan was enduring.

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This is only a small part. You can search on Baidu Encyclopedia: traditional festivals in China. Many and complete, you can choose by yourself.