Lion dancers perform in a street of the Chinatown district of Paris, to celebrate the Chinese New Year in 2024 in Paris, France. Photo: VCG

Now living in Norway, Beijinger "Nuowei Lao Wang" has celebrated the Spring Festival with his Norwegian family and friends for the past two years. They make dumplings, watch the Spring Festival gala, and play mahjong together. His friends have gotten so into it that they now always eagerly ask him when he will begin celebrating the following year.  

"Our gathering is full of Spring Festival specialties. Despite our different cultural backgrounds, they truly understand and appreciate the deep significance of reunion this festival embodies," Wang said, speaking about his delightful cultural experience thousands of miles away from the origin of Spring Festival.

"They have already gained an understanding of the 12 Chinese zodiac signs and how to play mahjong using Chinese terms. The Spring Festival brings them closer and closer to China's profound culture," Wang noted.

The Spring Festival has in recent years become an occasion to bring joy to people around the world. The international community not only recognizes China's culture and its values of peace and harmony, but also agrees with the common values of humanity that Spring Festival carries such as family harmony, social inclusion and a sound relationship between man and nature. 

During Spring Festival, people put anything unpleasant aside and forget about the trivial things in life to celebrate the connections and sincerity among people wholeheartedly and despite their differences.

As the Global Civilization Initiative proposed by President Xi Jinping says, in spite of differences in histories, cultures, political systems and development phases, countries around the world share a common aspiration for peace, development, equity, justice, democracy and freedom, the common values of humanity. 

A number of countries have already listed the Spring Festival as a public holiday, and about one-fifth of humanity celebrates this festival in various ways around the world.

It is not just a showcase of the influence of Chinese civilization, but also the interactions between diverse civilizations worldwide and the values of diversity and inclusion promoted by UNESCO.

Zheng Changling, a research fellow at the Chinese National Academy of Arts, told the Global Times that what's remarkable is how local populations worldwide have come to embrace the Spring Festival, understanding and identifying with its deeper meaning. 

This widespread acceptance shows how Chinese cultural values resonate with fundamental human needs, Zheng noted. In today's fast-paced society filled with strained interpersonal relationships and a world plagued by conflict and grievances, people can find spiritual fulfillment in the collective celebration of the Spring Festival, he said.

"The Spring Festival shares meaningful cultural values such as harmony and unity that can contribute to our shared human experience. As it spreads globally, the Chinese festival demonstrates how traditional celebrations can remain relevant and meaningful while fostering cross-cultural understanding," Zhang said.