芜湖公交车路线查询:关于中国新年的五个事实

关于中国新年的五个事实

BEIJING | Fri Jan 28, 2011 2:30am EST

北京|2011年1月28日 星期五 美国东部时间 凌晨2:30

BEIJING (Reuters Life!) - Chinese people across the world welcome the lunar new year on February 3, a period also known as the Spring Festival and marked by a long holiday.

北京（路透社·精彩生活）——世界各地的华人将在2月3日迎来他们的农历新年，这段时间也被称为“春节”，并会放一个长假。

Here are five facts about the festival, its meaning and some of the traditions and superstitions surrounding it:

以下是关于春节的五个事实，包括它的意义，以及其间的某些传统和迷信。

* This year is the year of the rabbit, according to the traditional Chinese lunar calendar.

* 根据传统的中国阴历，今年是兔年。

People born in the year of the rabbit are believed to be moderate, kind, happy and have great taste, but are also cautious and somewhat mysterious with a propensity to cry.

出生于今年的人被认为性情温良和善、品味不凡，但同时过于谨慎以及有不可思议的爱哭倾向。

People born in the years of 1963, 1975, 1987, 1999 and 2011 are all rabbits.

出生在1963、1975、1987、1999和2011年的人都是属兔的。

* There are 12 animals in the Chinese zodiac, including the pig, the rat, the ox and the snake, and there are several versions of how this came to be.

* 中国的生肖包括12种动物，包括猪、鼠、牛、蛇等，其形成有多种说法。

In one tradition, an ancient Chinese emperor held a race to decide which animal should get the honor of being first in the zodiac. The rat won after hitching a ride on the head of the ox and jumping over the finishing line ahead of him.

有一个传说是，一个古代中国皇帝决定举行一场比赛，获胜的动物将获得被排在生肖之首的荣誉。牛答应了老鼠的乞求，驮着它参赛，而老鼠却在接近终点时从牛的头上跳过了终线，超过牛得了第一。

* Chinese cities resound to a cacophony of firecrackers and fireworks during the festival in an effort to scare off evil spirits and attract the god of wealth to people's doorsteps.

* 春节期间，中国的城里到处都回响着刺耳的燃放烟花爆竹的声音，人们试图用这种方式驱走恶鬼并把财神引到自家门口。

Parents and grandparents give red envelopes stuffed with cash to children, sometimes hiding them under pillows on Chinese New Year's eve to ward off evil and bad luck. Denominations of the number eight are considered best, because "eight" sounds like the expression for "to get wealthy."

父母和祖父母会给孩子发红包，里面装有钞票。有时他们会在除夕之夜把红包藏在枕头下面，用以驱病避灾。红包里面的钱数会含有八，因为“八”和发财的“发”谐音。

* There are lots of traditional foods eaten. Northern Chinese eat dumplings, which symbolize wealth because their shape resembles old fashioned Chinese gold and silver ingots. Fish is a popular dish, for the word "fish" has the same pronunciation as the word for "abundance."

* 吃大量的传统食品。中国北方人吃饺子，饺子象征财富，因为其形状和中国古代金锭和银锭的形状相似。鱼也是非常常见的食品，因为“鱼”的发音和“富裕”、“有余”一样。

* Taboos abound. Crying on New Year's Day means you will cry for the rest of the year, and washing your hair signifies washing away good luck. The word for "four" is avoided, because it sounds like the word for "death," and using knives or scissors may "cut off" good fortune.

* 禁忌多多。在新年那一天哭泣意味着整年都会不断地哭泣，而洗头被认为会把好运气洗掉，人们会避免说“四”，因为听起来像“死”，还不能使用剪刀和小刀，那被认为会“断送”了好运气。

Children are told not to use bad words to avoid bringing misfortune in the year ahead.

孩子们被要求不要说不吉利的话，以免给新的一年带来不幸。

Households carry out a full clean ahead of the new year to clear away old and bad things from the previous year and welcome in the new one with a fresh face.

家家户户都会在新年前进行大扫除，将过去一年中的旧的、坏的东西丢掉，辞旧迎新，以全新的面貌迎接新的一年。

But woe betide those who clean on new year's day, for you will be sweeping away good fortune in the year ahead.

但在新年那天进行清扫则预示着灾难，会把未来一年的好运气都扫走了。

(Reporting by Ben Blanchard and Sabrina Mao)

（由本·布兰卡德和塞布丽娜·毛报道）