The Lantern Festival or Yuan Xiao Festival (simplified Chinese: 元宵节; traditional Chinese: 元宵節; pinyin: Yuánxiāojié) or Shang Yuan Festival (simplified Chinese: 上元节; traditional Chinese: 上元節; pinyin: Shàngyuánjié) in China or Chap Goh Meh (Chinese: 十五暝; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: cha̍p-gō-mê; literally "the fifteen night") Festival in Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore or Yuen Siu Festival in Hong Kong, or "Tết Thượng Nguyên" or "Tết Nguyên Tiêu"(Vietnamese: Tết Nguyên tiêu) in Vietnam; is a festival celebrated on the fifteenth day of the first month in the lunisolar year in the Chinese calendar, the last day of the lunisolar Chinese New Year celebration. It is not to be confused with the Mid-Autumn Festival, which is sometimes also known as the "Lantern Festival" in locations such as Singapore and Malaysia. During the Lantern Festival, children go out at night to temples carrying paper lanterns and solve riddles on the lanterns (simplified Chinese: 猜灯谜; traditional Chinese: 猜燈謎; pinyin: cāidēngmí). It officially ends the Chinese New Year celebrations.In ancient times, the lanterns were fairly simple, for only the emperor and noblemen had large ornate ones; in modern times, lanterns have been embellished with many complex designs. For example, lanterns are now often made in shapes of animals.
In some region and countries, this festival is also regarded as the Chinese version of St. Valentine's Day, a day celebrating love and affection between lovers in Chinese tradition and culture.
元宵節，亦稱為上元節、小正月、元夕、小年或燈節，日本稱上元（じょうげん）、小正月（こしょうがつ），朝鮮稱正月大滿月（정월대만월）、正月大보름（정월대보름，「보름」為固有詞，月圓、望日之意，或簡稱大보름）、上元（상원）、元宵（원소）、元夕（원석）、烏忌日（오기일），時間是每年的農曆正月十五。
元宵節是新年的第一個月圓之夜，象徵著春天的到來，人們吃元宵、賞燈、猜燈謎，以示祝賀。這是春節之後的第一個重要節日。 中華明朝錢塘瞿佑《雙頭牡丹燈記》：「每歲元夕，於明州張燈五夜。傾城士女，皆得縱觀」。在這一天，人們要吃元宵，鬧燈會，猜燈謎，提燈籠，許多地方還有拉兔子燈，放天燈的習俗。是華人社會的盛大節日之一。
道教中，上元節視為天官大帝（堯）誕辰，正月十五為上元，七月十五為中元，十月十五為下元，分別屬天、地、水這三官大帝主管。上元節乃天官華誕，故燃燈以慶。終唐一代，朝廷皆正式祭拜。
在中國廣東佛山，有元宵節的傳統習俗「行通濟，無閉翳」。寓意走過通濟橋，就會健健康康，不會犯愁。
在馬來西亞，未婚男女在元宵節聚集到河邊拋柑，並在柑上面寫下姓名和聯絡方式，希望就此結識可以攜手共行的伴侶。 在香港，元宵節亦成年貨再造和回收之黃金大良機。
在臺灣，除了賞花燈活動及著名的臺灣燈會、臺北燈節、高雄燈會藝術節之外，還有北臺灣的新北市平溪區放天燈活動。另外，在中臺灣的苗栗縣則有著名的「苗栗火旁龍」，苗栗火旁龍是指以鞭炮、蜂炮炸舞龍方式得到「去邪（去舊）迎新年」的作用。在南臺灣的臺南市鹽水區則有著名的「鹽水蜂炮」。在臺灣東部的臺東縣，則有以鞭炮炸財神的祈福活動：「臺東元宵炸寒單爺」。
在臺灣早期，有未婚女性在元宵節夜裡，以偷蔥來討個結婚吉兆的說法。俗語說：「偷挽蔥，嫁好翁；偷挽菜，嫁好婿」
wiki : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lantern_Festival
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