Chinese New Year Guide, Meaning , Facts, Information and Description
Chinese New Year (春节, 农历新年 or 过年), also known as the Lunar New Year or the Spring Festival, one of the traditonal Chinese holidays, is celebrated on the first day of the first month of the Chinese calendar, which is usually the day on which the second new moon after the winter solstice occurs. Celebrated internationally, especially in Chinatowns, Chinese New Year is the most important holiday of the Chinese people and much of East Asia by Koreans, Vietnamese and others who also have the same new year.
Around the New Year people greet each other with:
- "gong xi fa cai" (Traditional Chinese: 恭喜發財; Simplified Chinese: 恭喜发财) = "congratulations and be prosperous"
- "xīn nián kuài lè" (新年快樂) = "Happy New Year"
New Year's Eve and New Year's Day are celebrated as a family affair. The families get together during this holiday. The New Year's Eve dinner is very large and traditionally includes chicken. However, the New Year's Day dinner is typically vegetarian.
- nian gao (New Year's Cake: it is believed that the higher the cake rises the better the year will be)
- jiaozi dumplings
- yu sheng, a salad of raw fish (especially popular in Singapore and Malaysia)
- mandarin oranges (a symbol of wealth and good fortune)
- Red datess bring the hope for prosperity
- whole steamed fish (a symbol of long life and good fortune)
- uncut noodles (a symbol of longevity)
- baked goods with seeds (a symbol of fertility)
The date is determined by the Chinese calendar, a lunisolar calendar. The same calendar is used in countries that have adopted the Confucian and Buddhism tradition and in many cultures influenced by the Chinese, notably the Koreans, the Tibetans, the Vietnamese and the pagan Bulgars. Chinese New Year starts with the New Moon on the first day of the new year and ends on the full moon 15 days later. The lunar cycle is about 29.5 days. According to the solar calendar, the Chinese New Year falls on a different date each year.
Some Chinese New Year dates (in the Gregorian calendar) are listed below (with pinyin
romanization for the animals):
| Animal | Dates | |
|---|---|---|
| Rat - Zi | 1996 February 19 | 2008 February 7 |
| Ox - Chou | 1997 February 7 | 2009 January 26 |
| Tiger - Yin | 1998 January 28 | 2010 February 14 |
| Rabbit - Mao | 1999 February 16 | 2011 February 3 |
| Dragon - Chen | 2000 February 5 | 2012 January 23 |
| Snake - Si | 2001 January 24 | 2013 February 10 |
| Horse - Wu | 2002 February 12 | 2014 January 31 |
| Goat - Wei | 2003 February 1 | 2015 February 19 |
| Monkey - Shen | 2004 January 22 | 2016 February 8 |
| Rooster - You | 2005 February 9 | 2017 January 28 |
| Dog - Xu | 2006 January 29 | 2018 February 16 |
| Pig - Hai | 2007 February 18 | 2019 February 5 |
See Chinese zodiac for a list of Chinese New Year dates over the last century.
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In Chinese mythology, several legends are related to the Chinese new year. Examples include:
This is an Article on Chinese New Year. Page Contains Information, Facts Details or Explanation Guide About Chinese New Year Mythology
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