TheformationofthecustomoftheLanternFestivalhasalongprocess.
（元宵节习俗的形成有一个较长的过程。）
Accordingtogeneralinformationandfolklore,thefifteenthdayofthefirstlunarmonthhadbeenvaluedinthewesternhandynasty.
（据一般的资料与民俗传说，正月十五在西汉已经受到重视。）
Inthefirstlunarmonthofemperorwudiofthehandynasty,thesacrificetotaiyiwasheldattheganquanpalace.
Itisregardedbylatergenerationsasthepreludetosacrificetothegodofheavenonthefifteenthdayofthefirstlunarmonth.
（被后人视作正月十五祭祀天神的先声。）
However,thefifteenthdayofthefirstmonthoftheLanternFestivalasafolkfestivalisreallyafterthehanandweidynasties.
（不过，正月十五元宵节真正作为民俗节日是在汉魏之后。）
ThecustomofburninglanternsonthefifteenthdayofthefirstmonthisrelatedtotheeasternBuddhism.
Duringthetangdynasty,Buddhismflourished.
（唐朝时，佛教大兴。）
Officialofficialsandpeoplegenerallyinthefifteenthdayofthefirstmonthofthisday"burninglightsforBuddha",thelightsofthebuddhistfamilythenthroughoutthefolk.
（仕官百姓普遍在正月十五这一天“燃灯供佛”，佛家灯火于是遍布民间。）
Fromthetangdynasty,theLanternFestivalbecamealegalthing,andgraduallybecameafolkcustom.
（从唐代起，元宵张灯即成为法定之事，并逐渐成为民间习俗。）
People will eat yuanxiao, or rice dumplings, on this day, so it is also called the "Yuanxiao Festival."Yuanxiao also has another name, tangyuan.
It is small dumpling balls made of glutinousrice flour with rose petals, sesame, bean paste, jujube paste, walnut meat, dried fruit, sugar and edible oil as filling. Tangyuan can be boiled, fried or steamed. It tastes sweet and delicious.
What's more, tangyuan in Chinese has a similar pronunciation with "tuanyuan”, meaning reunion. So people eat them to denote union, harmony and happiness for the family.
人们在元宵节的时候会吃元宵，因此这个节日也就叫做元宵节。“元宵”还有另外一个名字—汤圆，用糯米粉做皮，玫瑰花瓣、芝麻、豆酱、枣泥、胡桃肉、干果、糖和食用油做馅，做成的小面球团。
汤圆可以煮、炸或者蒸来吃。吃起来甜甜的，很美味。而且，汤圆在中国和“团圆”这个词的发音相似，代表着团团圆圆。因此人们吃汤圆会象征着家庭的团圆、和谐和快乐。
本回答被网友采纳People usually hang lanterns in the gardens, outside the houses, and on the boats. These lanterns are signposts to guide guests and spirits of ancestors to the Lunar celebration. After a sumptuous fifteen-day feast, these lanterns light the way for the spirits back to the world beyond.
Silk, paper and plastic lanterns vary in shape and size and are usually multi-colored. Some are in the shapes of butterflies, birds, flowers, and boats. Other are shaped like dragon, fruit and animal symbols of that year. The most popular type of lantern is the "horse-racing" one, in which figures or animals rotate around the vertical axis of the lantern.
The special food for the Lantern Festival is Yuen Sin or Tong Yuen. These are round dumplings made with sticky rice flour. They can be filled and served as a sweet snack or made plain and cooked in a soup with vegetables, meat and dried shrimp. The round shape of the dumpling is a symbol of wholeness, completeness and unity.
The Lantern Festival is an occasion for families to get together and for everyone--young, old, rich and poor to have fun.
翻译如下：
年底举行的中国新年庆祝活动,在正月15月的这一天. 灯笼一直是几个世纪以来中国人的节日,所以没什么吃惊.
人们通常灯笼挂在花园外面的房子、船上. 这些指示标志灯的客人,是祖先的新年庆祝活动. 15点后两天大餐,这些灯照亮了回神后的世界.
丝绸、造纸、塑料灯笼形状和大小各不相同,通常多彩. 有蝴蝶形的、鸟、花、船. 其他都像龙、水果和动物的象征,一年. 最受欢迎的是一种花灯 " 赛马 " 一、人物、动物,轮流在各地纵轴的花灯.
特别是粮食的元宵圆善或汤圆. 这些都是用与糯米粉圆、甜零食熟了汤,蔬菜、肉、虾米来填补。圆圆的形状,是象征团圆的整体性、完整性和团结.
元宵是和家人团聚的机会,使每一个人--青年人、老年人,不论贫富,都好好享受这个节日
参考资料：http://zhidao.baidu.com/question/5676098.html
本回答被网友采纳The 15th day of the 1st lunar month is the Chinese Lantern Festival because the first lunar month is called yuan-month and in the ancient times people called night Xiao. The 15th day is the first night to see a full moon. So the day is also called Yuan Xiao Festival in China.
There are many different beliefs about the origin of the Lantern Festival. But one thing for sure is that it had something to do with religious worship.
One legend tells us that it was a time to worship Taiyi, the God of Heaven in ancient times. The belief was that the God of Heaven controlled the destiny of the human world. He had sixteen dragons at his beck and call and he decided when to inflict drought, storms, famine or pestilence（瘟疫）upon human beings. Beginning with Qinshihuang, the first emperor to unite the country, all subsequent emperors ordered splendid ceremonies each year. The emperor would ask Taiyi to bring favorable weather and good health to him and his people. Emperor Wudi of the Han Dynasty directed special attention to this event. In 104 BC, he proclaimed it one of the most important celebrations and the ceremony would last throughout the night.
Another legend associates the Lantern Festival with Taoism. Tianguan is the Taoist god responsible for good fortune. His birthday falls on the 15th day of the first lunar month. It is said that Tianguan likes all types of entertainment. So followers prepare various kinds of activities during which they pray for good fortune.
The third story about the origin of the festival is like this. Buddhism first entered China during the reign of Emperor Mingdi of the Eastern Han Dynasty. That was in the first century. However, it did not exert any great influence among the Chinese people. one day, Emperor Mingdi had a dream about a gold man in his palace. At the very moment when he was about to ask the mysterious figure who he was, the gold man suddenly rose to the sky and disappeared in the west. The next day, Emperor Mingdi sent a scholar to India on a pilgrimage（朝圣）to locate Buddhist scriptures. After journeying thousands of miles, the scholar finally returned with the scriptures. Emperor Mingdi ordered that a temple be built to house a statue of Buddha and serve as a repository for the scriptures. Followers believe that the power of Buddha can dispel darkness. So Emperor Mingdi ordered his subjects to display lighted lanterns during what was to become the Lantern Festival.
This day's important activity is watching lanterns. Throughout the Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 220), Buddhism flourished in China. One emperor heard that Buddhist monks would watch sarira, or remains from the cremation of Buddha's body, and light lanterns to worship Buddha on the 15th day of the 1st lunar month, so he ordered to light lanterns in the imperial palace and temples to show respect to Buddha on this day. Later, the Buddhist rite developed into a grand festival among common people and its influence expanded from the Central Plains to the whole of China.
Till today, the lantern festival is still held each year around the country. Lanterns of various shapes and sizes are hung in the streets, attracting countless visitors. Children will hold self-made or bought lanterns to stroll with on the streets, extremely excited.
"Guessing lantern riddles"is an essential part of the Festival. Lantern owners write riddles on a piece of paper and post them on the lanterns. If visitors have solutions to the riddles, they can pull the paper out and go to the lantern owners to check their answer. If they are right, they will get a little gift. The activity emerged during people's enjoyment of lanterns in the Song Dynasty (960-1279). As riddle guessing is interesting and full of wisdom, it has become popular among all social strata.
People will eat yuanxiao, or rice dumplings, on this day, so it is also called the "Yuanxiao Festival."Yuanxiao also has another name, tangyuan. It is small dumpling balls made of glutinous rice flour with rose petals, sesame, bean paste, jujube paste, walnut meat, dried fruit, sugar and edible oil as filling. Tangyuan can be boiled, fried or steamed. It tastes sweet and delicious. What's more, tangyuan in Chinese has a similar pronunciation with "tuanyuan”, meaning reunion. So people eat them to denote union, harmony and happiness for the family.
In the daytime of the Festival, performances such as a dragon lantern dance, a lion dance, a land boat dance, a yangge dance, walking on stilts and beating drums while dancing will be staged. On the night, except for magnificent lanterns, fireworks form a beautiful scene. Most families spare some fireworks from the Spring Festival and let them off in the Lantern Festival. Some local governments will even organize a fireworks party. On the night when the first full moon enters the New Year, people become really intoxicated by the imposing fireworks and bright moon in the sky.