Since the mid-1990s people in China have been given seven consecutive days off work during the Chinese New Year. This week of relaxation has been designated Spring Festival, a term that is sometimes used to refer to the Chinese New Year in general. The origins of the Chinese New Year are steeped in legend. One legend is that thousands of years Tourists wait to board a train at Shanghai Hongqiao Railway Station to return home for Chinese Lunar New Year holiday in Shanghai on Jan 25, 2025. Photo by CFOTO/ Future Publishing via Getty Images. Chinese New Year, or the Spring Festival (see also § Names), is a festival that celebrates the beginning of a new year on the traditional lunisolar Chinese calendar. For Chinese people, Lunar New Year is the Spring Festival, Before midnight on New Year’s Day, hair salons are abuzz with revelers, wishing to cut away last year’s bad luck and walk out Chinese New Year or Lunar New Year or Spring Festival 2025 falls on Wednesday, January 29th, 2025. Snake is the new year animal. Learn more about Chinese Lunar New Year traditions, taboos, food, zodiac signs, and greetings. Chinese New Year, also known as Spring Festival or Lunar New Year, is the grandest festival in China, usually with a 8 days' holiday. As the most colorful annual event, the traditional CNY celebration lasts longer, up to two weeks, and the climax arrives around the Lunar New Year's Eve. The Chinese New Year of 2025 falls on January 29th (Wednesday), and will last to February 2nd. It is the Year of Snake. As an official public holiday, Chinese people can get eight days' off from work, from January 28th to February 4th. The Chinese New Year of 2026 falls on February 17th (Tuesday), and will last to February 21th. It is the Year Chinese New Year is thought to date back to the Shang Dynasty in the 14th century B.C. Under Emperor Wu of Han (140–87 B.C.), the tradition of carrying out rituals on the first day of the How is Chinese New Year celebrated? Spring Festival is a time for families to come together, exchange money-filled red envelopes (红包, hóngbāo), and enjoy delicious Chinese food. The Chinese New Year is a 15-day holiday and includes a variety of festivities depending on the region and its local traditions and customs. Lunar New Year may be called different names in different East Asian countries and communities, but it is celebrated on the same date (and surrounding days) with similar celebrations. China. In China, Lunar New Year is known as Chinese New Year or in Chinese 'Spring Festival' (Chunjie). The celebrations traditionally last for 16 days, beginning Chinese New Year is the most important holiday in China. Tied to the Chinese lunar calendar, it begins on the new moon that appears between January 21 and February 20. The holiday was Chinese New Year, or the Spring Festival (see also § Names), is a festival that celebrates the beginning of a new year on the traditional lunisolar Chinese calendar. Why does Chinese New Year fall on different dates? Rather than following the western Gregorian Calendar with 365-day years, the Chinese New Year follows a lunar calendar based the moon's 12 phases Lunar New Year is also associated with the animals of the Chinese zodiac, and 2025 is the Year of the Snake. Start the day smarter. Get all the news you need in your inbox each morning. The Lunar New Year, or Spring Festival, marks the transition from one animal to the next—2024 is the year of the Dragon, which began on February 10th, 2024, and ends on February 24th, 2024. January 29th, 2025 (Chinese New Year) will signal the start of the year of the Snake. What’s Your Zodiac Sign? What are the animals of the zodiac? Each year honors an animal based on the Chinese zodiac. The circle of 12 animals — the rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog and pig — measure the cycles of time. Lunar New Year, festival typically celebrated in China and other Asian countries that begins with the first new moon of the lunar calendar and ends on the first full moon of the lunar calendar, 15 days later. The dates of the holiday vary from year to year, beginning some time between January 21 and February 20. Each Chinese lunar year has a Chinese zodiac sign animal. The Chinese zodiac year's stsarting date is a little different from the Gregorian year. It starts from Chinese New Year. The Chinese zodiac years chart below is provided to help you find out the exact starting and ending dates of the Chinese zodiac years. (This is especially useful for For Chinese people, Lunar New Year is the Spring Festival, and it’s celebrated widely in Taiwan and across Southeast Asia in countries with large Chinese populations, such as Singapore and Malaysia. Why does Chinese New Year fall on different dates? Rather than following the western Gregorian Calendar with 365-day years, the Chinese New Year follows a lunar calendar based the moon's 12 phases
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