For the Chinese, today is the first day of the Chinese Lunar New Year based on the Chinese Lunar Calendar. It’s similar to January 1 New Year based on the Western calendar. All Chinese communities around the world are celebrating it right now. It’s celebrated wherever there are Chinese communities. This year is the Year of Rat.

I know some may ask, “Why the Chinese celebrate their New Year in February? When and how did it originate? What do Chinese people do before, during, and after the Chinese New Year?” If you’re interested in the answer, please read on. Though I am not an expert in Chinese history, my answer should give you a brief intro of the Chinese New Year.

Why do Chinese celebrate their New Year in February? In fact, the Chinese New Year does not fall on a fixed date but on a different date every year because the date is calculated based on a combination of lunar and solar movements. However, it usually occurs near the end of January or early February. Plus, it always starts with the New Moon on the first day of the new lunar year and ends on the full moon 15 days later. So, no one actually can tell exactly when the Chinese New Year is each year without referring to a Chinese Lunar Calendar. A Chinese calendar consists of both the Western Gregorian and an indigeneous lunar-solar calendrical systems. The Chinese lunar-solar calendar divides a year into twelve month of 30 or 29 days. Adding a leap month every seven years, it coordinates well with the Western calendar. The dual-system calendar reflects the Chinese ingenuity.

Regarding the Chinese New Year, there is a Chinese proverb that says: all creations are reborn on New Year’s day. So, the Chinese New Year is actually a celebration of change: out with the old and in with the new! It’s a good time to start afresh if the past year wasn’t that good. It’s a good time to embark on new plans for new heights in your life for the year!

In the Far East, the spring usually starts around this time, February. To farmers, this is a time to to welcome spring as they plant for the new harvest. Thus, the Chinese Lunar New Year is also called the Spring Festival (simplified Chinese: ??; traditional Chinese: ??; pinyin: Ch?njié). To the Chinese, the events that occur during New Year’s Day may impact your life for the rest of the year. So, on the first day of the New Year, Chinese people are usually careful in their actions, are selective with what you eat, greet people who will/may bring you joy and fortune. They say all these so-called New Year behaviors may affect the outcomes of the whole year. So, to ensure an even more prosperous and healthy year, some Chinese people (usually with traditional mind and fungshui beliefs) will try their best to enhance and stimulate positive energy flow at home, at your business, and at work.

So, everything associated with the New Year’s Day represents good fortune. To single people, good fortune may mean love and romance. Good fortune may mean good grades to students, children for families, jobs for the unemployed and health for the sick.

Origin of the Chinese Lunar New Year

Its origin is too old to be traced. However, it was recorded that the Chinese started to celebrate Chinese New Year from about 2000 BC, though the celebrations were held on different times under different emperors. Legend says the celebrations of Chinese New Year may be related to a beast known as Nian (year). The beast Nian came out to eat people on new years until an old man found a way to conquer it. Then people started to observe and celebrate Chinese New Year. The word “Nian” now has the same meaning as Chinese New Year, which is used as commonly as Chinese New Year. And people often use the term “Guo Nian”, which may originally mean “passed or survived the Nian”. Now everyone loves Guo Nian. Isn’t it interesting?

Things Chinese generally do before, during, and after the Chinese New Year

Even though the climax of the Chinese New Year, or Spring Festival, lasts only three or five days, including the New Year’s Eve, the New Year season extends to the middle of the first month of the new year. A month before the New Year is a good time for shopping. People will buy presents, decorations, food, and new clothing to welcome the New Year.

To make this blog short, below is a list of things Chinese around the world may do during the New Year festival.

1. Preparation

Depending on individuals, the preparation may start a month before the new year. The preparation includes thoroughly cleaning and decorating the house, buying new clothes, preparing enough food for guest visits. The decorations are highly symbolic with a lot of lucky words, printed paintings and red colors everywhere. Everyone gets a haircut before the new year. So everything and everyone looks new and fresh on the new year. A new change!

2. New Year’ Eve

The New Year’s Eve is the time for family gathering. The New Year Eve’s dinner is said to be the biggest dinner of the year, much like Thanksgiving dinner.

3. Firecrackers

In some Chinese communities in the world, firecrackers are partially allowed. You can hear or see firecrackers everywhere and this usually lasts for a few hours. Traditionally fireworks are the sign of getting rid of the old and welcoming the new. Firecrackers are banned in Hong Kong for safety reasons except the official fireworks display on the 2nd day of the Lunar New Year.

4. Red Packets

Giving Hongbao, Lai See, or red packets during Chinese new year is another tradition. A Red packet is simply a red envelope with money in it, which symbolizes luck and wealth. Red packets are typically handed out to younger generation or singles by their parents, grand parents, relatives, and even close neighbors and friends.

5. New Year Greetings

Chinese New Year is also the time for socializing. People usually wear new clothes and go out to visit and greet their relatives and friends with popular “Gung Hei Fat Choi” (Cantonese) or “Gong Xi Fa Cai” (Mandarin) plus other greetings on people’s business, health, education, beauty, longevity, marriage, … etc. It can be all kinds of greetings as long as you mean it and it means good. So, the streets are filled with cheerful people, normally. For some families, the greetings and visitings can go on for a few days.

6. Dragon and Lion Dancing

As you may see in some Chinatowns in the world, dragon and lion dancing is another tradition of Chinese New Year.

7. Lantern Festival

Lantern Festival (or Yuanxiao) is on the 15th of the first month of Chinese New Year, which marks the end of the New Year celebrations. Chinese celebrate the first full moon of the year on this day. It is the time for family reunion again! Yuanxiao is also a kind of sweet dumpling, which looks like a table tennis ball (a little smaller) made of sticky rice with sweet stuffing inside. Everyone eats a few on Lantern Festival, which symbolizes family will stick together.

I hear you say, “Really?” Hope you enjoy this blog!

Happy New Year!