Since 1873, the official Japanese New Year has been celebrated according to the Gregorian calendar, on January 1 of each year, New Year's Day (元日, Ganjitsu). Prior to 1872, traditional events of the Japanese New Year were celebrated on the first day of the year on the modern Tenpō calendar, the last official lunisolar calendar. 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 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. Each phase cycle spans approximately 29 days with new year market Chinese New Year Origin: 4000 Years Ago. Chinese New Year can be traced back to 4000 years ago. Since there was no written record in Ancient Times (before 2000 BC), the exact beginning year is still uncertain. Some people believe that the Chinese New Year originated in Yushun Time (虞舜时代 yú shùn shí daì). 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 Year of Horse. After 1949, Chinese New Year was renamed to the Spring Festival. It was listed as a nationwide public holiday. Nowadays, many traditional activities are disappearing but new trends have been generated. CCTV (China Central Television) Spring Festival Gala, shopping online, WeChat red envelopes, fireworks shows, and overseas travel make Chinese Chinese New Year starts a new animal’s zodiac year. In China, each lunar cycle has 60 years and 12 years is regarded as a small cycle. Each of the 12 years is defined by an animal sign: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig. 2025 is the Year of the Snake and 2026 is the Year of the Horse. The history of Chinese New Year can be dated back to 3,800 years ago. Its origin was the worshiping activities for harvest in Shang Dynasty (17th century -1046 BC). Since the year 2000, Chinese New Year has been one of the PRC's Golden Weeks: there are three days of paid time away from work during the first few days and two weekends around it are moved to make a 7-day-long holiday. These Golden Weeks copied a similar Japanese idea. Chinese New Year, also known as the Lunar New Year or Spring Festival, is the most important and widely celebrated holiday in China and many other Asian countries. Its origins stretch back over 3,500 years, with traditions evolving and changing over centuries and millennia. Chinese zodiac years are represented by 12 animals. 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. 2025 Lunar New Year falls on January 29th. The public holiday lasts from January 28th to February 3rd, during which the New Year's Eve on January 28th and the New Year's Day on January 29th are the peak time of celebration. The commonly known New Year calendar counts from the New Year's Eve to the Lantern Festival on February 12th 2025. Some people will go to squares or even mountain-top temples to hear bells ringing at the end of the old year or the beginning of the new year. Chinese New Year's Day (Jan. 29, 2025) Celebrations - 正月初一. New Year's Day is the most important day of the year. Chinese zodiac, annual classification system in Chinese culture following the Chinese lunar calendar yingyang li (literally, “heaven-earth”) in which each year in a 12-year cycle is assigned an animal and each animal is associated with a personality that typifies the year and those born during that year. The cycle changes to a new animal The Chinese New Year is a holiday on the traditional Chinese calendar with immense cultural significance. With roots dating back prior to 1000 BC, this holiday has been a staple of Chinese culture for thousands of years. For around 1.4 billion Chinese, the new year begins on February 10 - unlike in the Gregorian calendar, China calculates its traditional new year's date according to the lunar cycle. The new year is on the new moon closest to Lichun (typically 4 February). The new year is on the first new moon after Dahan (typically 20 January) It has been found that Chinese New Year moves back by either 10, 11, or 12 days in most years. If it falls on or before 31 January, then it moves forward in the next year by either 18, 19, or 20 days Although Chinese New Year was not a national holiday on the Indonesian calendar for many years, beginning in 2002, Chinese New Year became a national holiday, to the pleasure of millions of Chinese Indonesians. Chinese New Year is a time to show respect for those that have passed away and to reunite with family members. It has been the center of many 贺年歌曲 (hènián gēqǔ, Chinese New Year songs) and literally means “congratulations, make a fortune!” Learn to sing along to the famous Chinese New Year song “恭喜” (gōngxǐ) in the following video. There are many similarities in the spirit and festive feeling between the Lunar New Year and our traditional New Year. Yet, there are also more than a few differences too. While most New Year's celebrations in the Western Culture involve family, the Lunar New Year is centered around family.
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