Some Chinese start to celebrate and prepare for Chinese New Year as early as day 8 of the 12 th month of the lunar calendar. This is a festival called Laba ( 腊八 Làbā /laa-baa/ '12th lunar month' + '8'), in the traditional sense, which marks the beginning of the Spring Festival. Chinese New Year, also called Lunar New Year or the Chinese Spring Festival, holds the most significant position among all Chinese festivals and holidays. It lasts for the first fifteen days of the Chinese lunar calendar, which on the Western calendar begins sometime between January 21 and February 21, varying from year to year. Learn how Chinese people celebrate the Lunar New Year, also known as the Spring Festival, with both traditional and modern practices. Find out about the preparations, the reunion dinner, the red envelopes, the fireworks, and the travelling during the 7-day holiday. Chinese New Year (Lunar New Year) is a time for families to be together. Chinese New Year's Eve is the most important time. Wherever they are, people are expected to be home to celebrate the festival with their families. The Chinese New Year's Eve dinner is called 'reunion dinner'. Big families of several generations sit around round tables and As the last day of the lunar year, Chinese New Year's Eve (除夕 chú xī) is the day before Chinese New Year. It is a grand reunion time for the whole Chinese family. People will participate in many activities to celebrate the coming new year. Chinese New Year's Eve Traditions 1. Putting Up New Year Decorations The Chinese New Year is also a time when the annual zodiac sign changes, meaning that each year is assigned to a specific zodiac animal. Zodiac signs play an integral role in Chinese culture. It is said that your luck regarding financial situations, health and relationships for each year can be calculated based on your zodiac sign. It is the Year of the Snake according to the Chinese zodiac, which features a 12-year cycle with each year represented by a specific animal. People born in the Years of the Snake including 1929, 1941, 1953, 1965, 1977, 1989, and 2025 will experience their Zodiac Year of Birth (Ben Ming Nian). 2026 Chinese New Year falls on Feb. 17th and it is The Vietnamese New Year celebration of Tet, short for Tet Nguyen Dan which means “festival of the first day”, is celebrated over three days as opposed to the traditional 15 of the Chinese New Chinese New Year red envelopes are a traditional gift for children or elderly people during Chinese New Year. In China, the red envelope (money) is called ya sui qian (压岁钱 /yaa sway chyen/), which means 'suppressing Sui [the demon]money'. Those who receive a red envelope are wished another safe and peaceful year. 6. Visiting Relatives Chinese New Year, the grandest festival for Chinese people, is celebrated for more than half a month.According to the oldest traditions, people follow a day-by-day schedule of Chinese New Year festivities from the 23rd day of the 12th lunar month, with specific things to do on certain days. Singaporeans celebrate Lunar New Year as one of the most auspicious holidays of the year, as well. Because there is such a big Chinese community in Singapore, many of the same cultural 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 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 Some Indigenous people also celebrate Lunar New Year this time of year, including members of Mexico’s Purepecha Indigenous group. How do diaspora communities celebrate? Members of Asian American communities around the U.S. also organize parades, carnivals and festivities around the Lunar New Year featuring lion and dragon dances, fireworks CCTV (China Central Television) Spring Festival Gala, shopping online, WeChat red envelopes, fireworks shows, and overseas travel make Chinese New Year more interesting and colorful. You Might Like. Top 3 Interesting Chinese New Year Legends/Stories; 10 Quick Facts about Lunar New Year; How to Celebrate Chinese New Year: Top 18 Traditions On this episode of Holiday Traditions we take a look at what is involved in the celebration of the Chinese New Year. The Chinese New Year, also known as the The new year passed days ago, but the Chinese New Year, one of the biggest Chinese festivals, is yet to come. Chinese people often spend quite a lot of time, say 16 days from Chinese New Year’s Eve to the Lantern Festival celebrating this event since Chinese New Year is a major event that marks a new start. 7. Sending Chinese New Year Wishes. During Chinese New Year, Chinese people will greet each other with pleasant words like: 'Xin nian kuai le' which means 'Happy New Year' (simplified Chinese: 新年快乐). See more Chinese New Year Greetings and Wishes. 8. Watching the New Year TV Gala 1. Sacrifice to ancestor. Honoring the dead is a Chinese tradition that has been kept for thousands of years. Ancestor worship is a practice based on the concept that the spirits of deceased family members still exist even after they have passed away and have the power to influence the fortunes of the living. Spring Festival, Lunar New Year, Chinese New Year, 过年 (guò nián) – whatever you prefer to call China's biggest holiday – is fast approaching. Unless you live near a Chinatown or in an area with a large Chinese population, chances are the day will pass without the fanfare that's happening on the other side of the Pacific.
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