摘要：虽然春运潮一年比一年猛，鞭炮和礼花一年比一年热烈，年夜饭一年比一年丰盛，很多国人却感到年味儿越来越淡了。年味儿为什么会变淡?我们提到过年时为什么不再有儿时的期盼和兴奋?本期内容让我们寻根究底，共同追寻"越飘越淡"的年味儿。

The Spring Festival travel rush, witnessed by tens of thousands people going home, gets more and more frightening every year. Firecrackers are more extravagant. The Spring Festival eve dinner gets even more delicious. However, most Chinese people feel that the atmosphere of Spring Festival, or Nianwei, is fading. How come? Why we feel less excited than bore when we mention the Spring Festival? Let's trace the Spring Festival atmosphere that is gradually fading away.

虽然春运潮一年比一年猛，鞭炮和礼花一年比一年热烈，年夜饭一年比一年丰盛，很多国人却感到年味儿越来越淡了。年味儿为什么会变淡?我们提到过年时为什么不再有儿时的期盼和兴奋?本期内容让我们寻根究底，共同追寻"越飘越淡"的年味儿。

【年味儿是什么味？】

What's Nianwei? What kind of atmosphere is it?

什么是年味？

It's the excitement and expectation on the way home; it's the smile on parents' faces when we arrive;

年味是回家途中的激动和期盼，是踏入家门时爸妈的笑脸；

It's the happiness of the whole family sitting together chatting; it's our toast to our elders at dinner;

是全家团圆的喜乐气氛，是晚辈孝敬长辈围坐在桌前敬的那一杯酒;

It's the smell of fireworks going off outside; it's the jiaozi (dumplings) for the Spring Festival eve dinner that mom has been busy preparing;

是屋外烟花闪耀飘进鼻内的一股幽香，是妈妈忙前忙后做的一顿年夜饭中的饺子；

It's the enjoyment of going to the temple fair and watching the dragon dance, a scene which drags us back to childhood; it's the friendly ambiance in which everyone says "Happy New Year" no matter whether they know each other or not;

是逛庙会看着舞龙仿佛又回到童年的一种享受，是甭管认识不认识，见面都说过年好的那种友好感觉；

It's the red lanterns hanging everywhere…

是满大街挂满了红灯笼充满了祝福话语的那种气氛……

Nianwei, the Spring Festival atmosphere, is happiness, peace and reunions…

"年味"是喜庆、是吉祥、是平安、是团圆……

【过年习俗】

There were many traditions in the Spring Festival in ancient times. Here we list some of the most wide-spread. How many are still kept alive in your family?

古时过年有许多习俗。双语君整理出了一些流传较广的传统习俗，来对照看看你家现在还保留了哪些？

--Cleaning: In Chinese, the pronunciation of "尘" (dust) and "陈" (stale things) are the same, so cleaning the dust bore the Spring Festival eve means kicking poverty and bad luck out of the house. The tradition embodies people's hope to bid farewell to the old and usher in the new.

扫尘：按民间的说法，因"尘"与"陈"谐音，新春扫尘有"除陈布新"的涵义，其用意是要把一切穷运、晦气统统扫出门。这一习俗寄托着人们破旧立新的愿望和辞旧迎新的祈求。

--Spring Festival couplets: The tradition of pasting Spring Festival couplets on doors originated during the Song Dynasty and became popular during the Ming Dynasty. The couplets are composed of neat, antithetic, compact and ingenious words to describe society and express good wishes. It is a unique Chinese literary form.

贴春联：这一习俗起源于宋代，在明代开始盛行。春联以工整、对偶、简洁、精巧的文字描绘时代背景，抒发美好愿望，是中国特有的文学形式。

--Window flower & "Fu": Many people like to use paper cuttings, known as "window flowers", to decorate windows. It's a folk art with a long history. Mythological legends, opera stories, flowers, birds, insects and fish can all provide inspiration for a paper cutting. The Chinese character "福" means good luck and fortune. It shows people's yearning for a happy life. People usually put up a poster with this character on it turned upside down, because the Chinese word "倒," which means upside down, sounds the same to "到," or "arrive".

贴窗花和倒贴"福"字：过年时人们还喜欢在窗户上贴上各种剪纸——窗花。窗花是一门历史悠久的民间艺术，内容包括神话故事、戏剧情节和花鸟鱼虫等。"福"字指福气、福运，寄托了人们对幸福生活的向往。人们通常将"福"字倒过来贴，表示"幸福已到""福气已到"。

--Staying up the whole night: The tradition of staying up the whole night on New Year's eve had two meanings in ancient times. The old stayed up to bid farewell to the old year, which reminds them to cherish every moment of time. While for the young, staying up was an act to show they wish their parents a long life. In modern times, people stay up the whole night to ward off disease and disasters and to wish for good luck in the New Year.

守岁：古时守岁有两种含义，年长者守岁为"辞旧岁"，有珍爱光阴的意思;年轻人守岁，是为延长父母寿命。现在人们通宵守岁，则是希望光明把一切邪瘟病疫驱走，来年吉祥如意。

--Firecrackers: Firecrackers date back over 2,000 years. The cracking sounds they make are perfect for creating a joyous atmosphere, and thus exploding firecrackers has become an important part of celebrations. They are also thought to bring happiness and good luck.

爆竹：其起源很早，至今已有两千多年的历史。爆竹可以创造出喜庆热闹的气氛，是节日的一种重要娱乐活动，可以给人们带来欢愉和吉利。

--New Year picture: The New Year picture is an age-old folk art. The pictures, which are often brightly colored, bring good fortune and happiness to thousands of families. The custom originated from the "door god" that is believed to guard the doors to homes. The most important places in which New Year pictures are made are Taohuawu of Suzhou, Yangliuqing of Tianjin and Weifang of Shandong. Pictures from the 3 places are of different genres.

年画：年画是中国的一种古老的民间艺术，浓墨重彩的年画给千家万户平添了许多兴旺欢乐的气氛。年画起源于"门神"。中国年画三个重要产地是苏州桃花坞、天津杨柳青和山东潍坊，形成了中国年画的三大流派，各具特色。

--Images of door gods: It's a Chinese decoration placed on each side of the entrance to a home or business that is believed to keep evil spirits from entering. Ancient people considered door gods to be a symbol of righteousness and forculness as they thought those with special appearances had supernatural or uncommon abilities.

贴门神：门神是一种传统装饰，贴在住宅或者商铺的门上，用以驱魔。门神是正气和武力的象征，古人认为，相貌出奇的人往往具有神奇的禀性和不凡的本领。

--Collecting fortune: It is said that the first day of the first month on China's lunar calendar is the birthday of the broom. People believe on this day they can't use a broom as it will clear out good luck and fortune. People also can't pour out water or throw out rubbish as they will lose money.

聚财：俗传正月初一为扫帚生日，这一天不能动用扫帚，否则会扫走运气、破财。这一天也不能往外泼水倒垃圾，怕因此破财。

--Paying New Year visits: It is an important custom during the Spring Festival. It is a way to say goodbye to the old year and ring in the new year and to send good wishes to one another.

拜年：拜年是中国民间的传统习俗，是人们辞旧迎新、相互表达美好祝愿的一种方式。

【年味变淡之个案】

>'Nianwei' fades as Gran ages

长辈老了'年味'淡了

Netizen Michelle, 25, recalls the good old days: "The whole family used to sleep late till midday on the Lunar New Year's Day, after staying up watching the Spring Festival Gala the night bore. We would then pay a New Year call to grandma with empty stomachs. After having lunch together, our cousins would came along with us to visit relatives, and we could come back just in time for supper. Grandma would make a pleasant meal, one of her specialties or a delicious soup. After dinner, the grown-ups gathered around the table, playing Mahjong and chatting away, while the cousins found it fun to have a girly talk."

25岁的网友Michelle回忆起以前过年的情景："因为要熬夜看春晚，以前过年，我们全家睡到大年初一的中午才起床，然后空着肚子到外婆家吃饭、拜年，再和表姐妹们一起去亲戚家。走一圈回来刚好吃晚饭。外婆亲手做了拿手菜，还会有两碗好喝的汤。吃完饭，大人们聊天、打麻将，表姐妹们则在一起聊悄悄话。"

"However, things change as the elders age. Now relatives only gather for lunch at a restaurant on the first day of New Year. Something is missing, though we order 3 tables of food. Grandma's health is declining, which stops her doing the cooking, so the activities in the evening are all canceled."

"可是，随着长辈们的年纪越来越大，大年初一的拜年便改了形式——亲戚们聚在饭店里吃顿饭，虽然有三大桌，但总感觉比往年少了些什么。外婆身体不太好，没办法下厨做饭，于是晚上的活动也取消了。"

>Working during New Year

过年无聊不如上班

During the 7-day holiday for Spring Festival last year, 30-year-old Li spent 3 days in the office. It was not obligatory, but she asked for it. "Spring Festival is so boring that I'd rather go to work," she said. A get-together of old schoolmates, which used to be held each year, has been canceled because so many of them were married. Now there was nothing to do, so Li volunteered to work without hesitation during the festival when her boss asked who would like to. "Better than playing on the computer games at home, after all," she said.

春节长假7天，30岁的小李有3天在办公室里度过，而且是她自己主动申请值班。她觉得"春节挺无聊的，还不如上班。"小李说，假期中没事情可做，老同学各自都有了家室，往年还有安排的同学聚会今年全部取消了。放假前领导问谁要值班时，小李便不假思索地报了名："总比在家里玩电脑有意思。"

【年味变淡之寻根究底】

Why is the atmosphere of Spring Festival fading? According to the China Youth Daily, many external factors contribute to the change: the urban and rural binary system, material abundance and spiritual emptiness, the shock of foreign festivals, the development of communication technology, the pressure of working and housing and the alienation of human relationships, etc.

年味为什么会越变越淡?据《中国青年报》评论，其中有很多外部因素：城乡分割的体制、物质的丰裕、精神生活的匮乏、外国节日的冲击、科技与通信技术的发展、现代人工作与买房的压力、人与人之间情感的淡漠……

It's always easy to find external reasons to blame, but we fail to notice the change within ourselves. Each of us is growing more complicated and apathetic as we gain more worldly wisdom. Under the burden of material desire, we ache to go back to a simple and innocent childhood. Should we be asking if it is the Spring Festival which is losing its flavor as the years pass, or it is us, who are growing more and more nostalgic, to blame?

我们总喜欢去外部寻找原因，却没发现自己也在一天天地改变，我们的内心在变复杂、变世故、变麻木，情感贫乏，为外物所累，欲望的沟壑填不满，转而去寻找那逝去的、单纯的童年。一年又一年，是年味太淡，还是我们对过去太留恋?

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