The Spring Festival, the first year of the lunar calendar, the Spring Festival, another name for the New Year, is China's grandest, the most lively and most important of an ancient traditional festivals, but also unique to the Chinese people. It is the most concentrated expression of Chinese civilization. Since the Western Han Dynasty, the custom of the Spring Festival has continued until today. Spring Festival generally refers to New Year's Eve and the first day of the first month. However, in folklore, the Spring Festival traditionally refers to the Lunar New Year Festival from the Lunar New Year's Eve or the Lunar New Year's 23rd or 24th Zaosai Festival until 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. How to celebrate this festival, in the development of thousands of years of history, the formation of a number of more fixed customs and habits, many of which are still handed down to the present day. In the Spring Festival this traditional holiday period, China's Han Chinese and most ethnic minorities have to hold a variety of celebrations, most of these activities to worship God and Buddha, pay homage to ancestors, in addition to the old and the new, welcome Jubilee to receive the blessing, and pray for a good year as the main content. Activities in a variety of forms, with a strong ethnic characteristics. 2006 May 20, "Spring Festival" folk approved by the State Council included in the first batch of national intangible cultural heritage list.

The origin of the Spring Festival has a legend that in ancient China, there was a monster called "Nian", with a long tentacled head, fierce and unusual. "It lived deep under the sea for many years, and only climbed ashore on New Year's Eve to devour livestock and hurt people. Therefore, every New Year's Eve, the people of villages and hamlets fled to the mountains with their young and old to avoid the harm of the "year" beast. One New Year's Eve, from outside the village came a begging old man. Folks a rush panic scene, only the east end of the village, an old woman gave the old man some food, and advised him to quickly go to the mountains to avoid the "year" beasts, the old man stroked his beard and laughed: "Granny if you let me stay at home one night, I'm sure that the 'year'! The old man smiled with his beard and said, "If you let me stay at home for one night, I will definitely drive the 'Year' beast away." The old woman still continue to persuade, begging old man smiled but did not say. In the middle of the night, the Beast of the Year came into the village. It found that the atmosphere in the village was different from that of previous years: the old woman's house at the east end of the village had a big red paper on the door, and the candles in the house were burning brightly. "The beast shivered and gave a strange cry. Near the door, the yard suddenly came "bang bang pop" sound, "year" trembling, and do not dare to come forward. It turns out that Nian is afraid of the color red, fire and explosions. At this time, the door of the mother-in-law's house was wide open, only to see an old man wearing a red robe in the yard laughing. "Nian was so shocked that he fled in disarray. The next day was the first day of the first month of the lunar calendar, and the people who came back from their refuge were very surprised to see that the village was safe and sound. It was then that the old woman came to her senses, and hurriedly told the townspeople about the old man's promise to beg. This story soon spread in the surrounding villages, people know the way to drive away the "New Year" beast. (Hakka legend) Since then every year on New Year's Eve, every family stick red couplets, firecrackers; household candles bright, to keep the night. Early in the morning on the first day, but also to visit friends and relatives to say hello. This custom is more and more widely spread, has become the most grand traditional Chinese folk festival. Second, the Spring Festival customs

1, Lunar New Year, the 23rd sacrificial stove

China's Spring Festival, generally from the opening of the sacrificial stove. Zaosi, is a very influential in our country folk customs, widely spread. In the old days, almost every house had a "Zao Wang" god in the stove.

2, Lunar New Year's Eve dust sweeping

"Lunar New Year's Eve, dust sweeping the house", according to the "Lv's Spring and Autumn Annals" records, our country in the Yao and Shun era on the Spring Festival dust sweeping custom. According to folklore: because the "dust" and "Chen" consonant, dust sweeping in the New Year has "in addition to the meaning of Chen Bu Xin", the intention is to all the poor luck, bad luck, swept out the door. This custom is a symbol of people's desire to break away from the old and bring in the new and their prayers for the old and the new. Whenever the Spring Festival comes, every household has to clean up the environment, wash all kinds of appliances, dismantle and wash the bedding curtains, sprinkle the six capitals of the courtyard, dusting dust cobwebs, dredge the nullahs and ditches. Everywhere overflowing with joyful health, clean and welcome the new year's atmosphere of joy.

3, Lunar New Year's Eve 25 to receive the Jade Emperor

The old custom is that after the God of the stove in the sky, the Jade Emperor in the lunar calendar on the 25th day of the twelfth month to personally down to the world, to check the earth's good and evil, and set the next year's misfortune, so all the family sacrifices to pray for blessings, known as the "receiving Jade Emperor". On this day, people should be careful in their living and speaking, and strive for good performance in order to win the favor of the Jade Emperor and bring down blessings in the coming year.

4, Lunar New Year 27, 28 bath

Traditional folklore in these two days to focus on bathing, laundry, remove the bad luck of the year, in preparation for the coming year's New Year, the capital has "27 wash guilt, 28 wash sloppy" proverb. Lunar New Year's Eve bath for "wash the blessing of Lu".

5, Lunar New Year's Eve on the thirtieth day of the month of Lunar New Year's Eve, sticking door gods, posting Spring Festival couplets, the New Year's Eve vigil, firecrackers, New Year's Eve dinner, to the New Year's Eve money, ancestor worship