![]() ![]() ![]() One of the traditional ways to begin celebrating the Lunar New Year is the “reunion dinner,” when families gather to celebrate hopes for the new year. Red is the color of joy and good fortune in Chinese cultures, and is most strongly associated with new year celebrations. The days or weeks leading up to Chinese New Year are also when communities begin to decorate with red: fresh red paint on the doors of businesses and homes, red paper cut-out decorations, red lanterns. (On the first several days of the festival, tradition holds that brooms be stored, so that the newly arrived good luck will not be swept away.) Cleaning symbolizes ridding the household of the previous year’s bad luck and making the home welcoming to good luck in the coming year. Prior to the official start of the holiday, Chinese households are thoroughly cleaned. Use the questions in the Questions tab to understand the significance of some of the sumptuous foods associated with the Lunar New Year. In the late 20th century, however, the holiday was re-introduced as the “Spring Festival.”Īlthough there is rarely a set “program” for Lunar New Year celebrations, some days are associated with specific rituals or festivities. The new year starts on the new moon nearest the midpoint between the winter solstice and the spring equinox, sometime between January 21 and February 20.Ĭhina officially adopted the Gregorian calendar, used by the West, in 1912. Months begin with every new moon, when the moon is not visible in the night sky. The historic Chinese calendar is a lunisolar calendar, meaning dates are determined by both the moon (lunar) and the sun (solar). The two-week celebration includes family and friends, feasting and fireworks, parties and parades.įor more than 3,000 years, Chinese New Year was just what it sounds like-the beginning of a new year in the Chinese calendar. Gung hay fat choy is how Cantonese speakers wish you a happy new year-literally "wishing you great happiness and prosperity." Gong xi fa cai is how Mandarin-speakers wish you a happy new year-literally "wishing you to be prosperous in the coming year." Many overseas Chinese communities speak Cantonese. In China, the official language is Mandarin. How do you wish someone "happy new year" in Chinese? It depends on who you're talking to. Lunar New Year, often called the Spring Festival or Chinese New Year, is the most important holiday in China and Chinese communities around the world. ![]()
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