中国历史文化概况(英文版)Unit 8 Traditional Holidays and Celeb

The time of the Mid-Autumn Festival
• The 15th day of every 8th lunar month is the traditional Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival. It is the most important festival after the Chinese Lunar New Year. The moon on the night of the 15th day of lunar August is believed to be fuller and brighter than in other months.
Paying New Year Calls
• Paying New Year calls is an important custom during the Spring Festival. On lunar New Year's Day, people visit friends and relatives, exchanging greetings and wishing them a happy new year in auspicious words. It is a way to ring out the Old Year and ring in the New Year and to send good wishes to one another.
Firecrackers
• Firecrackers are a special product of China. They are also called " and "cannon weapons" etc. Exploding firecrackers is an important custom during the Spring Festival, dating back over 2,000 years. Firecrackers were originally used to drive away poisonous mists or curb pestilence. Later, with the appearance of gunpowder, niter, sulphur and charcoal etc were filled into the firecracker bamboo pipe for explosion. Thus, "bursting weapons" were produced. As the blasting sounds are perfect for creating joyous atmosphere, exploding firecrackers has become a recreational activity with national characteristics. Nowadays, apart from letting off firecrackers during the Spring Festival to welcome the New Year, people also like to explode them for celebrations on weddings, foundation-laying ceremonies and grand openings etc.
1)The time of the Mid-Autumn 2)Legends about it 3)Celebrations
The time of the Spring Festival
The first day of the first lunar month is regarded as the new year of the Chinese. It is the
Celebrations
• In Hong Kong • In Dai minority • In Wuyuan • In Dong Minority • In Miao Minority
In Hong Kong
• Fire dragon dance is the most traditional custom on the Mid-Autumn Festival in Hong Kong, dating back some 100 years. Every year, grand fire dragon shows are performed for three nights in a row in Tai Hang of Causeway Bay starting the 14th of Augus源自文库 on the lunar calendar. The fire dragon is more than 70 meters long with its body divided into 32 segments, all of which are stuffed with straw and stuck full of incense sticks. On the festive night, the streets and alleyways in the area are packed with fire dragons joyfully dancing to drum music against the backdrop lit by colored lights, creating a fantastic atmosphere for the festival.
The Poster Bearing the character "FU" paper-cut for window decoration
• During the Spring Festival, every household usually sticks posters of various sizes bearing the Chinese character "Fu"(meaning "good fortune") on doors and walls. The character is a symbol of happiness, bliss and fortune. Sticking the poster upside down means the arrival of luck, happiness, and prosperity, because the Chinese word "Dao", or "upside down", sounds similar as "Dao", or "arrive".
Wu Gang chops the laurel
• Apart from the famous mythological story of "Cheng'e Flying to the Moon", there's another moon related story, which is about the laurel tree cutter Wu Gang. It is said that there was an extremely tall laurel tree on the moon and a man called Wu Gang was ordered to cut down the tree as a punishment for offending the god of heaven. He was not allowed to go home until he could cut down the tree. But the problem was that each time he chopped the tree, it would instantly grow back, making it impossible for him to cut it down. Like Chang'e, he had no choice but to cut the tree on the moon forever.
Staying up the whole night
on New Year's Eve
• Legend has it that in ancient times, there was a monster called "nian" or "year" that would harm people. Later, people found out that the monster routinely came out on New Year's Eve, so people began to get together on this day, staying up and chatting, hoping for peaceful passage of the time. The custom of staying up on New Year's Eve started in the South and North Dynasties, when people would stay up by the candle or oil lamp on New Year's Eve. The custom symbolizes the warding off of all diseases and disasters, wishing for good luck in the New Year.
The jade rabbit pounding
medicine in a mortar
• Legend has it that there were three immortals that turned themselves into three poor old men asking a fox, monkey and rabbit for food. The fox and the monkey had food to give them, but the rabbit had none and didn't know what to do. Later, the rabbit said: "just eat me for food!" With that, the rabbit jumped into a blazing fire, making himself ready to be eaten. The immortals were deeply touched and sent the rabbit to the palace on the moon to keep Chang'e company and he was made a jade rabbit.
Unit 8 Traditional Holidays and Celebrations
• Spring Festival:
1)The time of the Spring Festival 2)Legends about it 3)Celebrations
• Mid-Autumn Festival
most important and ceremonious traditional festival in China, just as Christmas Day
to the Westerners.
Dinner of the New Year’s
Eve
• The night before the Spring Festival is traditionally called "New Year's eve". The dinner for the whole family on this day is called "New Year's Eve Dinner". Every family member is expected to return home for the dinner. For someone really can't make it, other family members will put an empty chair by the table and place an empty bowl and chopsticks on the table, indicating that he (she) is not forgotten .