Calculation of the Chinese New Year has a set of rules. However, many exceptions can make things confusing. Generally speaking, the Chinese New Year falls between January 21 and February 21. The precise date is the second new moon after the December solstice (December 21) Each year the date is pushed back by 10, 11, or even 12 days compared to Layue (simplified Chinese: 腊月; traditional Chinese: 臘月; pinyin: Làyuè) is a term often associated with Chinese New Year as it refers to the sacrifices held in honour of the gods in the twelfth lunisolar month, hence the cured meats of Chinese New Year are known as larou (simplified Chinese: 腊肉; traditional Chinese: 臘肉; pinyin The solar year, which is the basis of the Gregorian calendar used around the world, is a bit more than 365 days long. The traditional Chinese calendar, which determines the date of the Lunar New Year, is lunisolar, which means it's based on the cycle of the moon as well as on Earth's course around the sun. 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 The celebration of New Year in China began to revive in the late 20th century, when the Chinese government began to liberalize its rule. Today, Chinese workers get a week-long holiday that extends through the first half of the Chinese New Year period, and they have returned to celebrating the holiday in a big way [source: History.com]. 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 When is Chinese New Year? The date of the Chinese New Year is determined by the traditional Chinese calendar, a lunisolar calendar that blends solar, lunar, and other cycles. The holiday falls on the second new moon after the winter solstice on December 21. Each year the New Year in China falls on a different date than on the Gregorian calendar. The lunisolar Chinese calendar determines the date of Lunar New Year. The calendar is also used in countries that have been influenced by, or have relations with, China – such as Korea, Japan, and Vietnam, though occasionally the date celebrated may differ by one day or even one moon cycle due to using a meridian based on a different capital city in a different time zone or different Because the Chinese calendar defines the lunar month containing the winter solstice as the 11th month, the Lunar New Year usually falls on the second new moon after the winter solstice. Just like New Year according to the Gregorian calendar (January 1), Lunar New Year celebrations start on the night before the first day of the new year. Each year of the lunisolar calendar is represented by one of 12 animals, called the Chinese Zodiac, which are thought to determine the personalities of people born that year. Hence a lunar year consisting of 12 months will be about 12 x 29.5 = 354 days. So a lunar year is about 11 days shorter than a solar year. The second rule of thumb is therefore that most of the time Chinese New Year will fall 11 (or sometimes 10 or 12) days earlier than the previous year, but if that would take us outside of the Chinese New Chinese New Year, also known as Lunar New Year or Spring Festival, is the most important festival in China. Chinese New Year starts from "Spring Commences (立春)", which is the first solar term of the 24 solar terms. What determines the date of Chinese New Year? The Moon. Like Easter in Christianity, Chinese New Year is a lunar festival. It begins with the New Moon, so it starts on January 25, 2020 and ends on 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 Your birth year determines your Chinese zodiac sign, but it can get tricky, as the lunar calendar varies from the solar, or Gregorian, calendar. Because the dates of Chinese New Year change every year, individuals born in January or February will need to pay special attention to their birth date in addition to their birth year. Chinese New Year 2025 will begin on January 29 according to the Gregorian calendar followed worldwide. Reliable, hardworking, patient, and determined - Represents: Strength, stability, and In 1912, the government decided to abolish Chinese New Year and the lunar calendar, but adopted the Gregorian calendar instead and made January 1 the official start of the new year. After 1949, Chinese New Year was renamed to the Spring Festival . This fun PowerPoint has your children guessing the Chinese New Year animal based on the cryptic clues. This would be an exciting way to round up your lesson on the Chinese New Year animals story and would help to reinforce your children's knowledge of the different animals of the zodiac. KS1 Dragons in the City: Chinese New Year Lesson Ideas
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