中国节日及假期阴历LUNAR CALENDAR正月初一 ── 春节(1st of the first lunar month—Spring Festival)Spring Festival, or Chinese New Year, occurs on the first day of the traditional Chinese lunar year (falling between the end of January and the end of February in the Gregorian calendar). People return home to be with their families. Traditions include cleaning the home; wearing new clothes; presenting gifts; pasting up auspicious couplets (对联) on either side of the front door; giving children small amounts of money in red envelopes (红包); in the North, making and eating boiled dumplings (饺子); and letting off firecrackers and fireworks. In business, all debts should be cleared at New Year. Celebrations can start late in the preceding month, and go on till the following Lantern Festival. The official holiday, however, is just three days.正月十五 ── 元宵节(15th of the first lunar month—Lantern Festival)The Lantern Festival falls on the first full moon of the lunar year. The main activity is watching lanterns and solving ‘lantern riddles’ (灯谜) written on them. The traditional food is round glutinous rice dumplings (元宵). The Lantern Festival marks the end of the New Year period.四月初八 ── 佛诞节(8th of the fourth lunar month—Buddha’s Birthday)Buddha’s Birthday is more popular in Hong Kong, and is especially celebrated in Buddhist temples.五月初五 ── 端午节(5th of the fifth lunar month—Dragon Boat Festival)A traditional festival, ostensibly commemorating the poet Qu Yuan (340-278 BC) of the state of Chu. Qu Yuan wrote what is regarded as some of the greatest poetry in Chinese history. On hearing the news of the defeat of Chu by Qin, he is said to have committed suicide by jumping into the Miluo River. The traditions of dragon-boat racing and eating glutinous rice pyramids (粽子) are meant to mark Qu Yuan’s death — since supposedly at the time local people threw rice into the river to divert the fish from eating his body.七月初七 ── 七夕节(7th of the seventh lunar month—Double Seventh Festival)