听老外给你唠唠为啥今年是狗年

Unlike our New Year celebrations, Chinese New Year is never on a fixed date – here’s when the festivities kick off in 2018

不同于我们的新年庆祝活动，中国的新年从来都不是固定的日子——这是2018年庆祝活动的开始。

CHINESE New Year is one of the world’s most colourful and exuberant events and triggers celebrations all across the globe.

中国的新年是世界上最丰富多彩、最热闹的活动之一，庆祝活动风靡全世界。

Unlike our festivities, which always take place at midnight between December 31 and January 1, Chinese New Year varies each year - here’s all the information you need

不同于我们通常在12月31日到元旦午夜之间的新年庆祝活动，中国农历新年的具体时间每年都在变化——本文将会告诉你今年春节的那些事。

When is Chinese New Year 2018?

中国的新年是什么时候？

The 2018 Chinese New Year begins on Friday, February 16.

2018年的中国新年将于2月16日周五开始。

The celebrations are tipped to last for over two weeks - and if you fancy making a trip before the festivities end, read this guide for a first-timer’s trip to China.

庆祝活动将持续两个多星期，如果你想在庆祝活动结束前进行一次旅行，请阅读这篇关于中国之旅的新手指南。

Chinese New Year takes place on a different date each year, because it is based on the lunar calendar.

中国的农历新年每年都在不同的日期，因为它是基于农历的。

New Year’s Day normally falls between January 21 and February 20.

春节通常在阳历的1月21日到2月20日之间。

How is Chinese New Year celebrated?

中国新年是怎么庆祝的？

The global celebrations are an explosion of light and sound, involving bell ringing, lighting firecrackers and watching traditional lion dances.

世界各地的春节庆祝现场，锣鼓喧天，鞭炮齐鸣，人山人海，红旗招展，观看传统的舞狮表演。

Chinese families gather together for a reunion dinner on New Year’s Eve, and clean their houses to sweep away bad fortune on New Year’s Day.

除夕夜，中国家庭聚在一起吃团圆饭，并会在大年初一这天打扫自己的房子，扫走霉运。

Traditionally, kids would be given red envelopes stuffed with ’lucky money’ and positive wishes on New Year’s Day.

根据传统习俗，孩子们在新年的时候会收到红包，里面塞满了“红包”和满满正能量的祝福。

Some teens now have red envelope apps, so their relatives can transfer cash digitally.

现在青少年间流行发红包的app，因此他们的长辈可以转账电子红包。

Which animal represents 2018?

哪个动物代表2018年？

2018 will be the Year of the Dog.

2018年将是“狗年”。

The Chinese zodiac moves in a 12-year cycle, and those born in 1958, 1970, 1982, 1994, 2006, and 2018 are also known as Dogs.

中国的十二生肖每十二年轮回一次，出生于1958年、1970年、1982年、1994年、2006年和2018年，也都是生肖属狗的宝宝们啦。

According to the Asian astrology, your year of birth - and the animal this represents - determines a lot about your personality traits.

根据亚洲的生肖说法，你的出生年份——以及这个代表的动物——决定了你的个性特征。

Although each of the twelve animals gets an outing every dozen years, there are different varieties - and 2018 will be the first Year of the Earth Dog since 1958.

虽然十二生肖每十二年都有一次，但每个狗年也会有不同的品种——2018年将是自1958年以来土狗（译者注：不是乡村田园犬的那个土狗，是金木水火土的土）的第一年。

Anyone born in an Earth Dog year will be communicative, serious, and responsible in the workplace.

任何出生在土狗年的人都是工作尽职尽责的人。

Which Chinese zodiac animal am I?

我是哪个生肖动物？

The Chinese animal zodiac or shengxiao, which means ’born resembling’, are arranged in a repeating cycle of 12 years.

同一个生肖年出生的人们往往具有相似的性格，每十二年是一个循环周期。

The animal changes at the beginning of the Chinese New Year, and traditionally these animals were used to date the years.

农历新年伊始，动物们就开始改变了，传统上，这些动物都是在过年的时候才开始使用的。

However, Chinese New Year is a movable celebration, dictated by the lunar cycle, which can fall anytime between January 21 and February 20.

然而，中国农历新年是一个可移动的庆祝活动，由月亮周期决定，在1月21日到2月20日之间的任何时间都有可能下降。

This year, for example, it will be celebrated on Friday, 16th February.

例如，今年将在2月16日星期五庆祝。

If you’re feeling confused, calculate your zodiac sign here.

如果傻傻分不清楚，这个图片可以直接算出你的生肖。

How are the Chinese New Year animals decided?

中国的农历新年是怎么决定的？

The choice of animals is significant - the ox, horse, goat, rooster, pig, and dog are six of the main domestic animals raised by Chinese people.

动物的选择是很重要的——牛、马、山羊、公鸡、猪和狗是中国人民饲养的6种主要家畜。

While the rat, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake and monkey are all loved by the Chinese.

鼠、虎、兔、龙、蛇、猴都是中国人的最爱。

The animals were separated into two categories - yin and yang - depending on whether they have an odd or even number of claws, toes or hooves.

这些动物被分成了两类——阴和阳——取决于它们的爪子、脚趾和蹄子的数量是奇数还是偶数。

They were then arranged into an alternating yin and yang sequence.

然后他们被安排成一个交替的阴阳序列。

It’s a little known fact that the zodiac animals can also be used to tell the time.

众所周知，十二生肖动物也可以用来记录时间。

Here’s how the Chinese clock works:

中国的时辰是这样标记的：

What is the Chinese Zodiac story?

什么是中国的十二生肖？

Legend has it that, back in the ancient days, the Jade Emperor ordered that animals would become part of the calendar - and that the 12 who arrived first would be selected.

传说，在古代，玉皇大帝下令将动物变成日历的一部分，限量12个名额，先到先得。

At the time, the cat and the rat were good friends.

在那个时候，猫和老鼠是好朋友。

When they heard the news, the cat said to the rat: "We should arrive early to sign up, but I usually get up late."

当他们听到这个消息时，猫对鼠说：“我们应该早点到，但我通常起得晚。”

The rat promised to wake his pal up so they could go together but, because he was so excited, forgot and went alone.

鼠答应把他的朋友叫醒，这样他们就可以一起去了，但是因为他太激动了，所以他忘记了，一个人去了。

On the way, the rat bumped into the tiger, ox, horse and other animals - who were all much faster than him.

在路上，鼠碰到了虎、牛、马和其他动物——它们都比他快得多。

He hatched a plan and convinced the ox to carry him on his back - on the condition that the rat sang throughout the journey.

他想出了一个计划，并说服牛把他背在背上——条件是鼠在整个旅途中都要唱歌。

The ox arrived first, but the rat sneaked in front of him and became the first lucky animal.

牛先到了，但鼠偷偷蹿到他前面，成了第一个幸运的动物。

By the time the cat arrived, the selection was over - which is why the cat hates the rat and will always try to chase and kill him.

等猫到达的时候，已经毫无选择了——这就是猫为什么讨厌老鼠，总是试图去追赶和杀死它的原因。