Every year, people around the globe celebrate Lunar New Year, also known as the Spring Festival in China or, more commonly, the Chinese New Year (via Cnet).Legend has it that at the beginning of each year, a monster by the name of Nian, the Chinese word for "year," would come and eat villagers. For the Chinese Lunar New Year, many people are eating foods that look like money, sound like good fortune and represent wholeness. Why it matters: "The Chinese believe that you have to have a Why Do People Eat Half a Fish on Chinese New Year? When you eat half a fish on Chinese New Year, it's all about abundance. You'll notice the whole fish served, but only the middle portion gets eaten. By saving the head and tail, you're symbolically carrying over wealth and resources into the next year. The auspicious symbolism of these traditional Chinese New Year foods is based on their pronunciations or appearance. Not only do the dishes themselves matter, but also the preparation, and ways of serving and eating mean a lot. The most common Chinese New Year foods include dumplings, fish, spring rolls, and niangao. We've rounded up 12 Chinese New Year celebrations revolve around food and family Fish holds special symbolic importance and is integral to the traditional reunion dinner on New Year’s Eve The pronunciation of fish in Mandarin and Cantonese sounds like the words for “surplus” or “abundance”, so eating fish represents hopes for prosperity in the coming year. Whole fish are among Lunar New Year's culinary staples, and part of the reason why lies in the presence of homophones in the Chinese language. Because the words 'fish' and 'abundance' share the same pronunciation in Mandarin, many Lunar New Year celebrations began to serve whole fish as a way to manifest incoming wealth in the coming year. On New Year's Eve family dinner, remember not to serve these dishes that are considered "inauspicious". Eating these dishes is thought to bring bad luck to the new year. Porridge. People should not eat porridge on the first day of the lunar new year. The ancient Chinese believed that porridge was associated with being thin and poor. You already know that you eat fish to celebrate the Lunar New Year because the Chinese word for fish (“yu”) sounds like the word for abundance. Yee sang is the recent tradition of tossing a Symbolizing prosperity, fish is a must for Lunar New Year. Fish (鱼, yu) is a homonym of 余 (yu), meaning surplus or extra. In public buildings like offices, hotels, and malls, visitors will In China, fish is traditionally served for Lunar New Year because the Chinese word for fish is a homophone for the Chinese word for surplus, thus symbolizing wealth. Dumplings Caitriana Nicholson/Flickr. Resembling coin purses, dumplings are said to bring wealth and prosperity in Chinese culture. Traditionally filled with a mixture of meat, tofu, egg, and/or "The Lunar New Year is the most important festival of the year for Chinese people, regardless of where you are. "My best memories from childhood are from this time of year with lots of yummy food, new clothes, fireworks, and staying up late with all the other children in the family. "Our family has a big dinner on Lunar New Year’s Eve. It is a popular dessert eaten during Chinese New Year. Find out its meaning, legends, types, and recipe here. Nian Gao's Meaning: Why Chinese Eat Nian Gao. Niangao is 年糕 in Chinese. The character 年 means 'year', and the character 糕 means 'cake', which share the same pronunciation as 高 (/gao/), meaning 'tall' or 'high'. Usually, it takes eight minutes for a smaller fish or 12 minutes for a bigger fish. According to Chef Leung Fai Hung, a fish weighing 1 catty (0.6kg) takes six minutes to steam, while a fish twice the size will take double the time. There is a Chinese idiom called 年年有餘 (nián nián yǒu yú). Because 魚 (fish) and 餘 have the same pronounciation. People created 年年有"魚", which means there's "fish" every year Eating fish during Chinese New Year is believed to bring surplus and abundance in the coming year. The Chinese word for fish, yu, sounds similar to the word for surplus, making it a popular choice for the celebration. It is considered good luck to eat nian gao because it has the symbolism of increasing prosperity every year. The New Year greeting 'Nian Nian Gao Sheng' (年年高升 niánnián gāoshēng) is to wish people "advance toward higher positions and prosperity step by step." Sticky rice - cohering of family Rice is one of the Twelve Symbols of Chinese people eat sweets on the new year to celebrate the new year and some sweets are tradition and culture, other countries eat sweets too! I guess it's mostly popular as a celebration. Hope 3. Sweet Rice Balls for Unity. Yuanxiao or tangyuan, served in syrup, are sweet glutinous rice balls that hold a special significance during the Lantern Festival, which marks the end of the Lunar Chinese New Year’s Fish Feast. The Chinese New Year is a time of celebration and feasting, and fish is an essential part of the festivities. In Chinese culture, fish symbolizes abundance and prosperity, and eating it during the New Year is said to bring good luck and fortune for the year ahead.
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