On January 25, 2023, over a billion people in China and millions around the world will celebrate the Chinese New Year, or the Spring Festival. The ancient tradition,     1    date is determined by the lunar calendar and falls somewhere between January 21 and February 20 each year is the longest and     2    important of all Chinese festivals.

The preparations will     3    (official) begin with Little Year on January 17, 2020. It is observed with a day of memorial and prayer ceremonies. Besides, cleaning the house     4    (sweep) away bad luck and hanging spring couplets (春联) on doorways for wealth are also common activities observed by people. Since red     5    (believe) to keep misfortune and evil spirits away, it can be noticed in everything from clothing to lanterns used to decorate houses.

Often     6    (consider) the most important meal of the year, the reunion dinner is both delicious and rooted in Chinese tradition. A whole chicken     7     (symbolize) family togetherness, while long uncut noodles show longevity (长寿). Wealth is represented by dumplings and spring rolls. Children receive red envelopes filled     8    money and inspiring messages from elders and are often allowed to stay up late to watch the     9    (amaze) fireworks shows.

    10    two-week long celebrations will end on February 8 - the day of the full moon-with the Lantern Festival.

For you, the “Clear and Bright” day that falls in every April might be no more than just another holiday — the fact that it comes with three days off school matters to most students much more     1     the fact that it is part of the 24 solar terms.

But the UNESCO has recognized the importance of the 24 solar terms. This ancient system that Chinese people have used to keep track of the time of year     2     (add) to the UNESCO list of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity on Nov. 30.

For starters, you may have heard your mom say: “The dog days are almost over. The heat won’t be here for long.” The dog days are a period of time that     3     (fall) in summer, somewhere     4     Slight Heat (in July) and the Limit of Heat (in August). The coldest days—the sanjiu days, are similar. They cover the 27 days     5     (follow) Winter Solstice.

In some places, solar terms guide people’s lives through special foods,     6     (culture) events and healthy living tips. For example, people from northern China are in the habit of eating dumplings on the day of Winter Solstice. And on Beginning of Autumn, some people treat     7     (they) to a big feast, especially of meat, something they call “putting on autumn weight”, or tieqiubiao.

But no matter     8     differently people celebrate the 24 solar terms, they have been here for a long time and could last forever.

According to Chinese writer and academic Yu Shicun, unlike many other examples of intangible cultural heritage — Peking Opera and Chinese Zhusuan, for example, the solar terms are neither regional (地域的) nor a type of art or skill. Instead, the system is a philosophy of time,     9     applies to everything. And this means they are     10     (likely) to die out.