Chinese New Year poem (3)

Chinese New Year poems are the poems Chinese poets wrote about Chinese New Year. Chinese poets have written many Chinese New Year poems. On the website, you can read some of the best Chinese New Year poems. The poems are put in separate articles. Each article contains the Chinese version of one Chinese New Year poem and its’ English translation. You can copy the Chinese versions of the Chinese New Year poems and use them in your own documents if you want. 

Through the Chinese New Year poems, you can know more about how Chinese celebrate Chinese New Year.

卖痴呆辞

宋 范成大

除夕更阑人不睡，厌禳钝滞迫新岁。
小儿呼叫走长街，云有痴呆招人买。
二物于人谁独无？就中吴侬仍有余。
巷南巷北卖不得，相逢大笑相揶揄。
栎翁块坐重帘下，独要买添令问价。
儿云翁买不须钱，奉赊痴呆千百年。

Translation

Poet: Fan Chengda of Song dynasty 

On the Chinese New Year’s Eve the people are sluggishly waiting for Chinese New Year.
Children peddle daftness on the streets.
Who doesn't have daftness? The people in Wu have too much of it.
The children go everywhere but can't sale it, and they joke with each other when they meet.
A happy old man sits beside his door and asks the price because he wants more.
The children answer that he can get it but pay one thousand of years later.

In ancient time, on Chinese New Year's Eve the children in Wu-region go around their neighborhood to sale daftness. Wu-region was thought as a region with many stupid persons, therefore the local people made this custom to show their self-deprecating humor. The Chinese New Year poem recorded the funny custom.

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