兔年春季开学日，从了解兔年文化开始！

兔年学期第一个工作日，借着小兔的福气，让我们开启美好的学期，Best wishes 兔 you~

Across many countries in east Asia, they celebrate a new year that starts depending on the phases of the moon. This means that the date varies from year to year (and can vary from country to country, too). This period is often called the 'Lunar New Year' or 'Spring Festival'.

在东亚的许多国家，他们庆祝新年，这取决于月亮的相位。这意味着日期每年都不同（也可能因国家而异）。这一时期通常被称为“农历新年”或“春节”。

While the celebration of new year in China can be referred to asChinese New Year or Lunar New Year, the Lunar New Year is also celebrated in other countries, includingVietnam,SingaporeandSouth Korea. 

虽然中国的新年庆祝活动可以称为中国新年或农历新年，但其他国家也庆祝农历新年，包括越南、新加坡和韩国。

So while the two terms can be used interchangeably in China, only the term 'Lunar New Year' should be used for celebrations in other countries.

因此，虽然这两个词在中国可以互换使用，但在其他国家，只有“农历新年”一词可以用于庆祝活动。

Chinese New Year is celebrated every year by millions of Chinese people and is the longest and most important holiday for a lot of Asian countries. It has also become a very popular celebration for people all over the world with many visiting their local Chinatown to take part in the festivities.

中国新年每年都有数百万中国人庆祝，是许多亚洲国家最长、最重要的节日。对于世界各地的人来说，这也成为了一个非常受欢迎的庆祝活动，许多人都会去当地的唐人街参加庆祝活动。

Chinese New Year doesn't happen on the same day each year,nor is it on what you might know as New Year's Day (January 1s). It usually falls somewhere between 21st January and the 19th February. In 2023, Chinese New Year falls on Sunday 22nd January.

中国的新年不是每年的同一天，也不是你可能知道的元旦（1月1日）。通常在1月21日至2月19日之间。2023年，农历新年在1月22日星期日。

Different countries have different ways of celebrating the new year. During the Chinese New Year, for example, they tell the story of the Zodiac and each year is marked with one of the animals from the story. The year 2023 is the Year of the Rabbit.

不同的国家有不同的庆祝新年的方式。例如，在中国新年期间，他们讲述十二生肖的故事，每年都会用故事中的一种动物来标记。2023年是兔年。

In Chinese culture, one of 12 different animals represent each new year. These animals form the Chinese zodiac, which repeats every 12 years. The zodiac tradition began many years ago and has been linked to a story about Buddha, a religious figure known in the Buddh is treligion. According to legend, Buddha asked all animals to come and compete in a great race. 

在中国文化中，12种不同的动物中有一种代表着每一个新年。这些动物组成了十二生肖，每12年重复一次。黄道十二宫的传统始于多年前，一直与一个关于佛陀的故事有关，佛陀是一个宗教人物，在佛陀中被称为三重神。根据传说，佛陀要求所有的动物来参加一个伟大的比赛。

Only 12 animals came so Buddha gave each of them their own year in the Chinese zodiac. The animals received their year in the order that they finished the race. However, there are many versions of the story, with each varying slightly.

只有12只动物来了，所以佛陀给他们每人一个生肖。动物们按照完成比赛的顺序获得了他们的一年。然而，这个故事有很多版本，每个版本都略有不同。

A long time ago in China, the Jade Emperor decided that there should be a way to measure time. He told the animals they were to compete in a race. The first 12 animals would be rewarded by having a year named after them.

很久以前，在中国，玉皇大帝决定应该有一种测量时间的方法。他告诉动物们他们要参加比赛。前12只动物将获得以它们命名的一年的奖励。

On the day of the race, all the animals lined up beside the river. The rat and the cat, who were good friends, were worried as they were not very good at swimming. They asked the ox if he would carry them across on his back. The ox agreed and they jumped on his back.

比赛当天，所有的动物都在河边排队。老鼠和猫是好朋友，它们很担心，因为它们不太擅长游泳。他们问牛是否愿意背着它们过河。牛同意了，他们跳到了他的背上。

When the race started, the rat and the cat were very pleased that the ox took the lead. They were almost at the other side when the rat pushed the cat into the water and jumped on the bank to finish first!

比赛开始时，老鼠和猫都很高兴公牛领先。当老鼠把猫推到水里跳到岸边时，他们几乎就在另一边了！

"Well done!" said the Jade Emperor to the rat. "The first year of the Zodiac will be named after you." The poor ox was tricked into second place and so the second year of the Zodiac was named after him.

“干得好！”玉帝对老鼠说。“十二生肖的第一年将以你的名字命名。”这只可怜的公牛被骗到了第二名，因此十二生肖的第二年以他的名字命名。

Shortly after, the exhausted tiger arrived on the river bank. Swimming the river had been very difficult, as he had to fight the strong currents. 

不久后，筋疲力尽的老虎来到了河岸。在这条河上游泳非常困难，因为他必须抵抗强大的水流。

The next to arrive was the rabbit, who hadn't swum across but hopped across on some stepping stones and then onto a floating log which carried him to the river bank.

下一个到达的是兔子，它没有游过去，而是跳到一些垫脚石上，然后跳到一根漂浮的圆木上，把它带到河岸。

Taking fifth place was the dragon, who had stopped on the way to help some animals. As the horse approached the line next, the snake wriggled蜿蜒行进 from around one of his hooves (马蹄). The horse was so surprised that he jumped backwards, giving the snake a chance to slither (滑行; 蛇行) forward and take sixth place. The horse came in seventh place.

第五名是龙，它在帮助动物的路上停了下来。当马接近下一条绳子时，蛇扭动着蜿蜒行进 从他的一只蹄子周围. 马很惊讶，向后跳了一跳，给了蛇一个滑行的机会(滑行; 蛇行) 前进，获得第六名。这匹马得了第七名。

Not long afterwards, a raft (木筏) arrived carrying the monkey, the rooster, and the goat. They explained how they had worked as a team to get across. The Emperor was very pleased. He said the goat would be the eighth year, the monkey the ninth and the rooster tenth. The next animal to arrive was the dog, who had stopped to bathe and play in the river.

不久之后，一只木筏带着猴子、公鸡和山羊来了。他们解释了他们是如何作为一个团队工作的。皇帝非常高兴。他说山羊是第八年，猴子是第九年，公鸡是第十年。下一个到达的动物是狗，它停下来在河里洗澡和玩耍。

There was one place left in the Zodiac and the Emperor wondered who the last winner would be.All of a sudden, the pig turned up. "You took a long time, what happened?" the Emperor asked. “I was hungry and stopped to eat, then I fell asleep," said the pig. The twelfth year was given to the pig.

黄道十二宫只剩下一个位置，皇帝想知道最后的赢家是谁。突然，猪出现了。“你花了很长时间，发生了什么事？”皇帝问。“我饿了，停下来吃饭，然后睡着了，”猪说。第十二年是给猪的。

Once all 12 animals had arrived, the Jade Emperor threw a big feast to celebrate. As for the cat, he finally crawled out of the river but was too late to have a year named after him. 

当12只动物全部到达后，玉皇大帝举行了一场盛大的宴会来庆祝。至于这只猫，他终于爬出了河，但为时已晚，无法以他的名字命名一年。

He was very angry with the rat for pushing him in and since then, cats have never been friends with rats! From that day to this, the Chinese Zodiac has followed this cycle of years, named after the12 animals.

他对老鼠把他推进去非常生气，从那以后，猫就再也不和老鼠做朋友了！从那一天到现在，十二生肖一直遵循着这一周期，以12种动物命名。

The rabbit is seen as a tender and loving creature. The Chinese moon goddess Chang'e had a rabbit for a pet as it is such an approachable and friendly animal. 

兔子被认为是一种温柔可爱的动物。中国月亮女神嫦娥有一只兔子作为宠物，因为它是一种平易近人、友好的动物。

Some believe that the Chinese zodiac sign you are born under will influence your personality and character traits. Legend has it that people born under the sign of the Rabbit are believed to be gentle,witty,quick-minded and skilful. 

有些人认为，你出生的生肖会影响你的性格和性格特点。传说中，出生在兔子星座下的人被认为是温柔、机智、头脑敏捷、技巧娴熟的。

People born in the Year of the Rabbit usually have soft and tender personality traits. They keep humble attitudes and they maintain welcoming relationships with people around them. They are not easily annoyed and they try to avoid confrontations as much as possible.

兔年出生的人通常性格温和。他们保持谦逊的态度，并与周围的人保持友好的关系。他们不容易生气，他们尽量避免冲突。