元宵節lantern festival由來中英文翻譯

元宵節

自漢朝(公元前206年—公元221年)起，元宵節就已成為了中國新年慶祝活

動中的一部分了。一般農歷的正月十五為元宵節，這一天也標志著新年慶祝活動

的結束。

The Lantern Festival has been part of Chine New Year cele

brations since the Han Dynasty (206 BC- 221 AD). Usually he

ld on the 15th day of the first month of the lunar calend

ar, it marks the end of New Year festivities。

據說元宵節由古代中國的一個傳說演化而來，傳言每至農歷第一個月圓之夜，

便可看到天上飛動的神靈。為了更容易尋找神靈，他們都會用一些火把照明，而

這些火把也逐漸由一些形狀、大小、顏色各異的燈籠所取代。

It is said that the holiday evolved from an ancient Chine

belief that celestial spirits could be en flying about i

n the light of the first full moon of the lunar calendar.

To aid them in their arch for the spirits they ud to

rches. The torches gave way to lanterns of every shape, s

ize and colour。

元宵節廣受喜愛的另一個原因在于：它也被看做中國的情人節，因為在過去，

這一天少男少女們可以利用這個寶貴的機會晚上一起出去約會。而今，在中國、

香港、新加坡和臺灣每年都會歡慶元宵節，以此作為中國新年慶祝的收尾。同時

這些地方每年也會舉辦一些比賽來評選最佳彩燈。

The Lantern Festival is also popularly referred to as the C

hine Valentine’s Day becau in days of old it gave girl

s and boys a rare chance to go out in the evening and mi

ngle. Today, lantern festivals are held each year in China,

Hong Kong, Singapore and Taiwan to mark the end of Chines

e New Year celebrations. Competitions are held to lect the

best lanterns。

燈籠

燈籠的形狀各異，大小不同。一些燈籠會扎成動物、昆蟲、花朵、人甚至是

機器或建筑物的形狀。還有一些則描繪了許多廣為流傳故事的情景，用來宣揚孝

道以及傳統價值觀。最受大眾喜愛則為當年生肖動物的主題彩燈，2014年會是

馬年。

The lanterns

The lanterns come in all shapes and sizes. Some are created

in the form of animals, incts, flowers, people or even

machines or buildings. Others depict scenes from popular stor

ies teaching filial piety and traditional values. A favourite

subject is the zodiac animal of the year

猜燈謎

元宵節傳統習俗中還有一部分是關于猜燈謎的游戲。在過去，這些謎語大多

出自于模糊的文學典故和中國古典之中，所以猜燈謎以前多為知識份子的“領

地”。

Lantern riddles (caideng mi)

Part of the lantern festival tradition involves a game to g

uess riddles attached to the lanterns. In the old days the

riddles were obscure literary allusions to the Chine clas

sics and so were mainly the prerve of the educated clas

s。

特色小吃

與大多數中國節日一樣，元宵節同樣有自己的特色小吃，稱為“湯圓”(也

叫“元宵”)。湯圓外形圓圓的，外皮由糯米制成，內餡或甜或辣。人們都說湯

圓有兩個象征之意，一為農歷的第一個月圓，二為家庭團聚圓滿。

Special foods

Like most Chine festivals, the Lantern Festival has its ow

n special food, called "tang yuan". The are round, glutino

us rice dumplings with sweet or spicy fillings. The dumpling

s are said to symboli both the first full moon and famil

y unity and completeness。