On January 25, 2020, 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    2     (long) and most important of all Chinese festivals.

The preparations will     3     (official) begin with Little Year on January 17 , 2019. It is observed with a day of memorial and prayer ceremonies. Other Little Year activities include cleaning the house     4    （sweep) away bad luck and hanging spring couplets —-red decorations hung in pairs —on doorways for wealth. Since red     5       ( believe) to keep misfortune and evil spirits away, it can be noticed in everything from clothing to     6    (lantern) used to decorate houses.

Often     7       ( consider) the most important meal of the year, the reunion dinner is   both delicious and rooted in Chinese tradition.     8    whole chicken symbolizes family togetherness, while long uncut noodles show longevity (长寿）. Wealth is represented by dumplings and spring rolls. Children receive red envelopes filled     9     money and inspiring messages from elders and are often allowed to stay up late to watch the     10    (amaze) fireworks shows.

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