The 2007 Chinese Lunar New Year once again reflected the emergence of a new trend: Chinese New Year is being celebrated by people around the world. It has become a festival celebrated by ordinary people in many countries and one that is enjoyed by both Chinese and non-Chinese.

Since the 1990s, the Spring Festival has become increasingly fashionable in countries and regions where Chinese have immigrated. Many festivities are held. Heads of state and government leaders convey their greetings to the local Chinese community. Some cities and regions have listed Spring Festival as a public holiday. On the eve of Spring Festival this year, more than 1,000 red and gold lights were lit on the top of the Empire State Building. London Mayor Ken Livingstone, joined by footballers Frank Lampard from Chelsea and Wang Dalei from Shanghai, turned on huge Chinese lanterns at Oxford Circus to launch celebrations arranged to coincide with the Lunar New Year. A Chinese friend residing in Paris told me on the phone that farmers from Brittany had arranged a special Spring Festival promotion. Each person purchasing their cheese was entitled to a free pair of Chinese chopsticks. The farmers said they were taking advantage of the Spring Festival to generate business in this beautiful season. From the president to local villagers, French people are celebrating the Chinese Lunar New Year, each in their own way.

With more and more people around the world aware of the cultural value of the Chinese Lunar New Year, the Spring Festival is becoming more internationalized. Different to Western religious holidays and festivals, Spring Festival celebrations reflect people's desire for well-being in their current life. People pray for happiness, look forward to the future, guard their family, and seek smooth and harmonious interpersonal relations during these holidays. All these philosophies are well demonstrated in a series of festive activities. Jubilant drums and firecrackers, lion dances, and the ubiquitous Chinese red color, reflect an optimistic outlook on life. To Chinese people, the Spring Festival is a folk show. To people in other countries, it has a broader and deeper implication: it is a festival of cultural exchange and an opportunity for people across the world to appreciate different cultures and communicate.

Owing to the efforts of tens of millions of overseas Chinese in more than 150 countries, the beautiful festival is receiving more and more international recognition. It is these people's love of Chinese culture and high degree of cultural consciousness that has encouraged the spread of Chinese Lunar New Year traditions and customs to other countries and peoples.

Chinese language fever has also played a role in increasing the popularity of the Spring Festival. Since the first Confucius Institute was opened in Seoul, the capital of South Korea in November 2004, China has signed agreements with 52 countries to establish 131 Confucius Institutes across the world. Eighty-seven of these have already been opened. There are a large number of people studying Chinese through a variety of channels. Moreover, these people are sharing their interest and love of Chinese language and culture with their family and friends.

These people realize that learning the language and studying Chinese culture will allow them a shortcut to a dynamic country and the world's fourth largest economy, as well as improve ties with a great nation that has a growing economic, diplomatic and cultural influence in the world. They also understand that mastering the Chinese language and understanding the culture is a prerequisite for fully understanding the world. In such circumstances, how could Spring Festival, the largest folk festival of the Chinese nation, be left out?

Thanks to China's development and increasing prosperity, the world is embracing a great new cultural celebration, the Spring Festival.

The author, Zheng Yuanyuan, is senior editorial writer of People's Daily.