英语单词：中国传统节日

　　学了这么多年英语，需要用英文介绍中国的`美食和文化时，是否就哽咽了?不要困惑!一起往下看怎么准确地翻译中国传统文化名词，希望对大家有所帮助。

　　春节(农历正月初一)—— Spring Festival

　　除夕 New Year's Evening

　　正月 lunar January

　　初一 the beginning of New Year

　　元宵节 (农历正月十五) Lantern Festival

　　端午节 (农历五月初五——the fifth day of the lunar month) Duan Wu Festival or

　　Dragon Boat Festival(龙舟节)

　　清明节Qing Ming Festival

　　中秋节 (农历八月十五) Mid-Autumn Chinese Festival

　　重阳节 (农历九月初九)Chung Yang Festival or Double-ninth Day

　　腊八节 (农历腊月初八)the laba Rice Porridge Festival

　　过年 celebrate the spring festival

　　春联 spring festival couplets

　　剪纸 paper-cuts

　　年画 new year paintings

　　买年货do shopping for the spring festival；OR

　　do spring festival shopping

　　敬酒 propose a toast

　　灯笼 lantern

　　烟花fireworks

　　爆竹 firecrackers (people scare off evil spirits and ghosts with the loud pop.)

　　红包red packets

　　(cash wrapped up in red paper，symbolize fortune and wealth in the coming year.)

　　舞狮 lion dance(the lion is believed to be able to dispel evil and bring good luck.)

　　舞龙dragon dance(to expect good weather and good harvests)

　　戏曲 traditional opera

　　杂耍 variety show

　　灯谜 riddles written on lanterns

　　灯会 exhibit of lanterns

　　守岁 staying-up

　　拜年 pay new year's call / give new year's greetings / pay new year's visit

　　禁忌 taboo

　　去晦气 get rid of the ill- fortune

　　祭祖宗 Offer sacrifices to one's ancestors

　　压岁钱 gift money or money given to children as a lunar new year gift culture note；

　　辞旧岁 bid farewell to the old year

　　扫房 spring cleaning ; general house-cleaning

　　年糕nian-gao; rise cake; new year cake

　　团圆饭 family reunion dinner

　　年夜饭the dinner on new year's eve

　　饺子 dumpling; Chinese meat ravioli

　　粽子 rice dumpling

　　闰年leap year

　　十二生肖zodiac

　　关于中国四大传统节日英文介绍

　　端午节

　　The Dragon Boat Festival, also called the Duanwu Festival, is celebrated on the fifth day of the fifth month according to the Chinese calendar. For thousands of years, the festival has been marked by eating zong zi (glutinous rice（糯米）wrapped to form a pyramid using bamboo or reed leaves) and racing dragon boats.

　　The festival is best known for its dragon-boat races, especially in the southern provinces where there are many rivers and lakes. Thisregatta（赛舟会）commemorates the death of Qu Yuan , an honest minister who is said to have committed suicide by drowning himself in a river. Qu was a minister of the State of Chu situated in present-day Hunan and Hubei provinces, during theWarring States Period(475-221BC)（战国时期）. He was upright, loyal and highly esteemed for his wise counsel that brought peace and prosperity to the state. However, when a dishonest and corrupt prince vilified Qu, he was disgraced and dismissed from office. Realizing that the country was now in the hands of evil and corrupt officials, Qu grabbed a large stone and leapt into the Miluo River on the fifth day of the fifth month. Nearby fishermen rushed over to try and save him but were unable to even recover his body. Thereafter, the state declined and was eventually conquered by the State of Qin. The people of Chu who mourned the death of Qu threw rice into the river to feed his ghost every year on the fifth day of the fifth month. But one year, the spirit of Qu appeared and told the mourners that a hugereptile（爬行动物）in the river had stolen the rice. The spirit then advised them to wrap the rice in silk and bind it with five different-colored threads before tossing it into the river.

　　During the Duanwu Festival, a glutinous rice pudding called zong zi is eaten to symbolize the rice offerings to Qu. Ingredients such as beans,lotus seeds（莲子）,chestnuts（栗子）, pork fat and the golden yolk of a salted duck egg are often added to the glutinous rice. The pudding is then wrapped with bamboo leaves, bound with a kind of raffia and boiled in salt water for hours.

　　The dragon-boat races symbolize the many attempts to rescue and recover Qu's body. A typical dragon boat ranges from 50-100 feet in length, with a beam of about 5.5 feet, accommodating two paddlers seated side by side.

　　A wooden dragon head is attached at the bow, and a dragon tail at thestern（船尾）. A banner hoisted on a pole is also fastened at the stern and the hull is decorated with red, green and blue scales edged in gold. In the center of the boat is a canopied shrine behind which the drummers,gong（铜锣）beaters andcymbal（铙钹）players are seated to set the pace for the paddlers. There are also men positioned at the bow to set off firecrackers, toss rice into the water and pretend to be looking for Qu. All of the noise and pageantry creates an atmosphere of gaiety and excitement for the participants and spectators alike. The races are held among different clans, villages and organizations, and the winners are awarded medals, banners, jugs of wine and festive meals.

　　中秋节

　　The Midautumn Festival is the traditional festival in this day,people ,espically family members will have a happy get- Chinese people vaule this festival for its important meaning of "reunion".And the mooncake is the symbolic represents the "reunion" just like the full moon.

　　Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival is one of the four major traditional festivals.中秋节是中国四大传统节日之一。

　　元宵节

　　The Lantern Festival (元宵节) is the last day of the Chinese New Year celebration. This day is for the last moment for setting off fireworks, the last excuse for eating a big feast and the last chance for family getting together before the “年”

　　celebrations are over. (Latern Festival is also a traditional time of celebration for foreigners who live in China).

　　The Lantern Festival, the 15th of the first month of the lunar calendar, is the first full moon of the year. Celebrations and traditions on this day date back to the Western Han Dynasty.

　　Traditions for this festival: as the name indicates, hanging and looking at lanterns is the main tradition. Lanterns of various shapes and sizes are displayed on trees, or along river banks.

　　Parents often take their children to Lantern Fairs and sometimes lucky kids even get a mini toy lantern.

　　Another tradition is guessing lantern riddles. These are riddles that are hung on lanterns for people to shoot down and solve. The riddles are usually short, wise, and sometimes humorous. The answer to a riddle can be a Chinese character, a famous person's name, a place name or a proverb. This tradition has become a popular game with serious staying power even as social development changes other traditions.

　　Other than that, the most important thing to do today is to eat sweet dumplings. In northern China, sweet dumplings made of glutinous rice flour are called “元宵” while in southern part they are called “汤圆”. Typical sweet

　　dumplings are filled with black sesame sauce, sweetened bean paste, or hawthorn. Making “元宵” today is like a game or an activity, so it's seldom done without a reason and a group of friends or family present to help out.

　　清明节

　　Qing Ming is a time to remember the dead and the dearly departed. More important, it is a period to honour and to pay respect to one's deceased ancestors and family members. Because it reinforces the ethic of filial piety, Qing Ming is a major Chinese festival. Literally meaning "clear" (Qing) and "bright" (Ming), this Chinese festival falls in early spring, on the 106th day after the winter solstice. It is a "spring" festival, and it is an occasion for the whole family to leave the home and to sweep the graves of their forebears. Chinese being practical people this sweeping of the graves is given an extended period, that is, 10 days before and after Qing Ming day. Among some dialect groups a whole month is allocated.

　　清明节是一个纪念祖先的节日。主要的纪念仪式是扫墓，扫墓是慎终追远、郭亲睦邻及行孝的具体表现；基于上述意义，清明节因此成为华人的重要节日。 清明节是在仲春和暮春之交，也就是冬至后的106天。扫墓活动通常是在清明节的前十天或后十天。有些地域的人士的扫墓活动长达一个月。