過年為什麽一定要吃魚?魚，取自諧音，在中華文化中代表著年年有“餘”。中國人總是希望在年底還有所富餘，所以每年
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Chinese New Year Foods are very important to Chinese people. All family members come together to eat at Spring Festival. Chinese New Year foods are not only delicious, but also steeped in tradition. Chinese dumplings, fish, spring rolls, and niangao are usually eaten at Chinese New Year.
年夜飯對中國人來說非常重要。當天所有的家庭成員圍坐在一起享受這一過程。年夜飯不僅僅是美味，也很有中國傳統的意味。餃子，魚，春卷，和年糕總是必不可少的。
Fish 魚 Yú /yoo/ In Chinese, "fish" sounds like 'surplus'. Chinese people always like to have a surplus at the end of the year, because they think if they have managed to save something at the end of the year, then they can make more in the next year.
魚，取自諧音，在中華文化中代表著年年有“餘”。中國人總是希望在年底還有所富餘，因為如果在年底還有富餘的話，那麽意味著來年你會擁有更多的財富。
Fish can be cooked in various ways such as boiling, steaming, and braising. The most famous Chinese fish dishes include steamed weever, West Lake fish with pickled cabbage and chili, steamed fish in vinegar sauce, and boiled fish with spicy broth.
魚的做法有很多種，例如煲湯，清蒸，燉煮。最有名的做法則有清蒸鱸魚，酸菜魚，糖醋魚，水煮魚。
The Meaning of Various Fish
各種魚代表的含義
What fish should be chosen for the New Year feast is based on auspicious homophonics.
年夜飯上對于魚的選擇取決于它吉利的名字。
1. Crucian carp: As the first character of ‘crucian carp' (鯽魚 jìyú \jee-yoo\) sounds like the Chinese word 吉 (jí /jee/ ‘good luck'), so eating crucian carp is considered to bring good luck for the next year.
鯽魚：它的第一個字和另外一個字“吉”的發音有點類似。所以如果吃鯽魚的話第二年會帶來吉利。
2. Chinese mud carp: The first part of the Chinese for mud carp (鯉魚 lǐyú /lee-yoo/) is pronounced like the word for gifts (禮 lǐ /lee/). So Chinese people think eating carp during the Chinese New Year symbolizes wishing for good fortune.
鯉魚：它的第一個字的發音則和“禮”字發音接近，而“禮”這個字在中文裏表示禮物，所以中國人就認為要想來年殷實富裕就要在新年多吃鯉魚。
3. Catfish: The Chinese for catfish (鯰魚 niányú /nyen-yoo/) sounds like 年餘 (nián yú) meaning ‘year surplus'. So eating catfish is a wish for a surplus in the year. Eating two fish, one on New Year's Eve and one on New Year's Day, (if written in a certain way) signifies a wish for a surplus year-after-year. If only one catfish is eaten, eating the upper part of the fish on New Year's Eve and the remainder on the first day of the new year has the same meaning (上鯰魚下鯰魚; 上年餘下年餘).
鯰魚：因其音似“年餘”一詞，所以吃鯰魚則意味著來年的盈餘。如果能在除夕夜和大年初一各吃上一條鯰魚，那麽寓意以後財富年年享用不完。當然還有種說法就是在除夕夜吃了一條鯰魚的上半部，而把剩餘的那一半在初一當天吃完。
The Origin of Eating Fish During the Spring Festival
過年吃魚這個習俗的來歷
Once upon a time, in the New Year's Eve meal, fish not only represented the auspicious sound of surplus, but was also thought to repress evil. Dating back to the Han Dynasty (206 BC – 220 AD), fish played a symbolic role in keeping down demons, and were painted on door knockers. In the Tang Dynasty (618–907), all doorknobs, including on house doors, cabinet doors, and case doors, were designed with a fish pattern, which also possessed the same function. This doorknob belief maybe contributed to the tradition that Chinese eat fish for the New Year's Eve meal. However, the demon repression meaning has gradually been forgotten.
很早以前就有在春節吃魚的習俗。魚的諧音“餘”不僅僅代著盈餘，也象征著降妖除鬼。在古代的漢朝，畫在門叩上的魚在降魔中賦予了很重要的作用。在唐朝，魚的圖案會出現在門把上，大門上，櫃子門，箱子門上，以便驅走鬼怪。所以門把手設計魚這一觀念對中國人在新年裏吃魚有很大的影響。降妖除鬼則被慢慢的淡忘。同時把作為最後一道菜的魚不吃幹凈，則是迷信于年年有餘的說法。
Lucky Sayings for Eating Fish
和魚有關的吉祥話：
1. 年年有餘 : May you always get more than you wish for. 祝您年年有餘
2. 魚躍龍門 : A fish leaping over the dragon gate — implying successful passing a competitive examination
一條魚越過龍門，意味著在比賽中拔得頭籌(舉業成功或地位高升)。