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It's Lunar New Year, a time when millions of people around the world celebrate the beginning of the new year in the lunar calendar.
现在是农历新年期间，全世界会有亿万人民庆祝农历新年的开始。
The event is marked by many Asian cultures in lots of different ways.
许多亚洲文化会以不同的方式纪念这一事件。
In the UK, like in other countries around the world, we use what's called the "Gregorian calendar".
像世界上其他国家一样，在英国，我们使用所谓的“公历”。
This divides the year into 12 months, and always starts on the 1st of January.
公历将一年分为12个月，并且总是从1月1日开始。
But the lunar calendar is different, it follows the cycle of the moon. And the Lunar New Year is marked at the start of a new moon.
但农历则是不同的，它遵循的是月亮的周期。农历新年的标志是新月的开始。
Because of this, the date of the celebration changes each year, but always falls sometime between the 21st of January and the 20th of February.
因此，庆祝农历新年的日期每年都在变化，但通常都是在1月21日到2月20日之间的某个时候。
In Chinese tradition, this year marks the year of the dragon, because each year is named after one of the 12 animals in the Chinese Zodiac, which include rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog and pig.
在中国的传统中，今年是龙年，每一个农历新年都会以中国十二生肖中的一种动物命名，这些动物包括鼠、牛、虎、兔、龙、蛇、马、羊、猴、鸡、狗和猪。
And every 12 years each of these animals gets a moment in the spotlight.
每隔12年，这些动物都会站在聚光灯下。
In Chinese culture, it's believed that the animal associated with the year that you're born, represents the different qualities and characteristics that you have.
在中国文化中，人们相信与你出生的年份相关的动物，代表了你拥有的不同品质和特征。
So if you're born in the year of the dragon, you'll be confident and intelligent.
所以，如果你出生在龙年，寓意着你会非常自信且聪明。
Lunar New Year celebrations last for around 15 days, and the important occasion is marked in a variety of ways in different cultures.
农历新年庆祝活动大约会持续15天，在不同的文化中，人们会以各种方式庆祝这个重要的节日。
New clothes are often worn, for the Chinese, red is seen as a lucky color.
人们经常会穿新衣，对中国人来说，红色被视为幸运的颜色。
Koreans like to wear Hanboks, and the Vietnamese buy red, yellow and blue clothing for luck.
而韩国人喜欢穿韩服，越南人则会买红色、黄色和蓝色的衣服以求好运。
In some cultures, younger people are given envelopes containing money.
在一些文化中，年轻人会得到装有钱的信封。
Fireworks and special parades with colorful floats and performances fill the streets.
街道上到处都有烟花和彩车的特别游行和表演。
Windows are decorated, and beautiful lanterns are often lit and released.
窗户会贴上装饰，人们也会点燃和释放漂亮的灯笼。
A big part of Lunar New Year across all cultures is food.
在所有文化中，农历新年的一个重要组成部分就是食物。
The Vietnamese traditionally eat banh chung, made from sticky rice, mung beans and pork.
越南人的传统是吃“banh chung”，这是一种由糯米、绿豆和猪肉制成的食物。
Koreans eat tteokguk, a special soup containing rice cakes.
韩国人是吃tteokguk，这是一种含有年糕的特殊汤品。
And the Chinese often celebrate with foods including fish, dumplings and spring rolls.
而中国人则是会用鱼、饺子和春卷等食物来庆祝春节。
It's a time when families come together to let go of the past and welcome the new, a very happy Lunar New Year to those who are celebrating.
这是一个家人团聚、辞旧迎新的时刻，祝那些在庆祝的人们：农历新年快乐。
