Chinese Customs- 中国风俗- 除夕 new year‘s eve

除夕，是指每年农历腊月最后一天的晚上，也是大年初一的前夜。除夕是中国最重要的传统节日，也是阖家团圆的日子，除夕主要是除掉一种叫做年的猛兽。
　　年，又叫夕、岁，它生性凶残，每隔365天就会出来吃人，村民们发现年兽害怕烧碎竹节的爆炸声，于是便利用这种方法除掉年，而年出现的这一晚也被称为年关，在年关将近时，大家还会提前做好晚饭，躲在家里吃“年夜饭”，并且还要在吃饭前供祭先祖，祈求祖先保佑平安度过这一夜。吃过晚饭后，人们便挤坐在一起闲聊壮胆，避免年兽再次来犯。久而久之就形成了除夕、熬年、守岁的习惯。
New Year's Eve refers to the evening of the last day of the twelfth lunar month of each year, and also the eve of the first day of the new year. New Year's Eve is the most important traditional festival in China, and it is also a day for family reunion. New Year's Eve is mainly to get rid of a beast called Nian.
Nian is also called Xi and Sui. It is cruel by nature and will come out to eat people every 365 days. The villagers found that the Nian beast was afraid of the explosion of the bamboo joints, so they used this method to get rid of the Nian. This evening is also known as the New Year's Pass. When the New Year's Pass is approaching, everyone will make dinner in advance and hide at home to eat the "New Year's Eve dinner", and also offer sacrifices to the ancestors before eating, and pray for the ancestors to bless the night. After dinner, people squeezed and chatted together to avoid the Nian Beast from coming again. Over time, the habits of New Year's Eve, staying up for the year, and keeping the year old have been formed.