Culture and celebrations
In this lesson you will learn to talk about culture and celebrations — festivals, family gatherings, traditional food and gifts, and how people celebrate. We will use time words like 每年 (every year) and the 一…就… (as soon as) pattern, plus 不但…而且… (not only… but also…), so you can describe customs and compare them with Ethiopian holidays.
每年春节，全家人都会一起吃饭
měinián chūnjié, quánjiā rén dōu huì yìqǐ chīfàn
በየዓመቱ የፀደይ በዓል ቤተሰቡ ሁሉ አብሮ ይመገባል
一到节日，街上就很热闹
yī dào jiérì, jiē shàng jiù hěn rènào
በዓል እንደደረሰ ጎዳናው ወዲያው ይደምቃል
按照传统，我们会给孩子送礼物
ànzhào chuántǒng, wǒmen huì gěi háizi sòng lǐwù
እንደ ባህሉ ለልጆች ስጦታ እንሰጣለን
这个节日不但有意思，而且很重要
zhège jiérì búdàn yǒuyìsi, érqiě hěn zhòngyào
ይህ በዓል አስደሳች ብቻ ሳይሆን በጣም አስፈላጊም ነው
阿贝贝在中国学习汉语，今年他第一次过春节。他的中国朋友大伟请他去自己家。一到家，大伟的妈妈就给他一杯热茶。按照传统，全家人一起包饺子，一边包饺子一边聊天。阿贝贝觉得这很像埃塞俄比亚的节日：大家也会回家，一起喝咖啡、吃英吉拉。大伟说：“春节不但是一个吃饭的日子，而且是一个全家团圆的日子。”晚上，他们一起看烟花。阿贝贝给家里的妈妈打电话，告诉她中国的节日越来越让他想家。他说，不同的国家有不同的节日，但是爱家人的心是一样的。
Useful celebration words: 节日 (jiérì, festival), 春节 (chūnjié, Spring Festival), 传统 (chuántǒng, tradition), 礼物 (lǐwù, gift), 团圆 (tuányuán, family reunion), 热闹 (rènào, lively). To say "celebrate a festival", use the verb 过 (guò): 过春节 = "celebrate the Spring Festival".
Check your understanding
1/9 · 100 XPListen. What does the whole family do every Spring Festival?
No audio on this device — the word is shown below
每年春节，全家人都会一起吃饭