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\tChinese spring festival is Chinese new year, which is the most important of the traditional Chinese holidays in China. In Chinese name it is called \u6625\u8282\uff08Ch\u016bnjié\uff09<\/strong>\uff0csince the spring season in Chinese calendar starts with lichun, the first solar term in a Chinese calendar year. It marks the end of the winter season, analogous to the Western Carnival.<\/p>\n \tChinese New Year starts with the New Moon\uff08\u65b0\u6708x\u012bn yuè\uff09<\/strong>on the first day of the new year and ends on the full moon\uff08\u6ee1\u6708m\u01cen yuè\uff09<\/strong>15 days later. The 15th day of the new year is called the Lantern Festival\uff08\u5143\u5bb5\u8282Yuánxi\u0101o jié\uff09<\/strong>, which is celebrated at night with lantern displays and children carrying lanterns in a parade.<\/p>\n \tThe Chinese calendar is based on a combination of lunar and solar movements. The lunar cycle\uff08\u6708\u8fd0\u5468\u671fyu yùn zh\u014duq\u012b \uff09<\/strong>is about 29.5 days. In order to "catch up" with the solar calendar the Chinese insert an extra month once every few years (seven years out of a 19-yearcycle). This is the same as adding an extra day on leap year \uff08\u95f0\u5e74rùn nián \uff09<\/strong>. This is why, according to the solar calendar, the Chinese New Year falls on a different date each year.<\/p>\n \tNew Year's Eve and New Year's Day are celebrated as a family affair, a time of reunion and thanksgiving. The celebration was traditionally highlighted with a religious ceremony given in honor of Heaven and Earth\uff08\u4e07\u7269wàn wù\uff09<\/strong>, the gods of the household and the family ancestors.<\/p>\n \tThe sacrifice to the ancestors, the most vital of all the rituals\uff08\u4eea\u5f0fyí shì<\/strong>\uff09, united the living members with those who had passed away. Departed relatives are remembered with great respect because they were responsible for laying the foundations for the fortune and glory of the family.<\/p>\n \tThe presence of the ancestors is acknowledged on New Year's Eve with a dinner arranged for them at the family banquet table. The spirits of the ancestors, together with the living, celebrate the onset of the New Year as one great community. The communal feast called "surrounding the stove" or weilu. It symbolizes family unity and honors the past and present generations.<\/p>\n \tChinese New Year is the longest and most important festivity in the Chinese calendar. Chinese New Year is celebrated in China and in countries and territories with significant Chinese populations, including Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore,Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Taiwan, Mauritius, Philippines, and also in Chinatowns elsewhere. Chinese New Year is considered a major holiday for the Chinese and has had influence on the lunar new year celebrations of its geographic neighbors. <\/p>\n