People usually sit around, eat snacks, talk, tell stories, and play games to wait for the arrival of the New Year.Įven if people fall asleep, a light in the house is often kept on for the whole night, which is believed to invoke good luck and 'scare away' ghosts and spirits of misfortune that may otherwise compromise the luck of the New Year. According to traditional Chinese belief, staying up on this night brings longevity to parents - the longer you can stay awake, the longer your parents will live. Lunar New Year's Eve is probably the only night of the year when the whole family stay up late. ![]() Adults give red envelopes to their (elderly) parents to wish them good health and a long life. Generally, the elderly give red envelopes to the younger generation, which are supposed to suppress evil spirits and convey sincere wishes for good luck. There are a lot of traditions for this day.Īfter the New Year's Eve dinner, it is a traditional custom to give red envelopes containing money, which are known as hongbao (red envelopes) in Mandarin, lai see in Cantonese, or lì xì in Vietnamese. Lunar New Year's Eve, the last day of the old year, is the most important day of the holiday. The word 'dust' in Chinese is a homophone for 'old', thus cleaning the house is symbolic of driving away the bad luck of the previous year to allow for a new start. It is traditional for families to clean their houses and the areas surrounding them before the start of the new year. Therefore, people prepare abundant of votive offers to show their thankfulness to the Kitchen God, and also wish that he would say good things about them to the Jade Emperor, as well as asking, on their behalf, for a peaceful and prosperous coming New Year. On the 23rd day of the 12th month of the Lunar Calendar, according to Chinese tradition, Kitchen God departs to deliver an annual report on the household's activities to the Jade Emperor in heaven.Īccording to the report, the Jade Emperor will decide to bless or punish that family in the New Year. Sending off 'Kitchen God' is a very old custom. From the day of 'Little Year' (小年 xiǎo nián, one week before Lunar New Year), people begin to prepare New Year commodities, clean house, decorate houses with lanterns and New Year paintings, pray to the Kitchen God, etc.Īll these activities share a common theme, that is: 'bid farewell to the old and welcome the new'. People usually start preparing for the New Year a week or half a month in advance of the actual date of the holiday. Asian countries share many similar traditions, but each also has some unique traditions. ![]() Lunar New Year is a festival rich in traditions and customs. We have more for you to read about animals signs in Asian countries. In the Thai zodiac there is no Dragon but rather a Naga (a mythical monster that looks like a giant snake). The Vietnamese zodiac resembles the Chinese zodiac except that the second animal is the Buffalo instead of the Ox, and the fourth animal is the Cat instead of the Rabbit. The zodiac signs in most countries are identical to the Chinese ones, but a few of the animals differ in some countries. Lunar New Year 2023 is a year of the Rabbit. The 12 zodiac animals in order are: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig. ![]() The Chinese zodiac gives each year an animal sign.Įach year in the Lunar calendar is associated with one of 12 Chinese zodiac animals. Celebrations with these elements have been preserved to this day. In order to chase the beast away, people used loud noises, fire, and the color red. A monster named Nian would attack villagers every Lunar New Year's Eve. A very old legend about Lunar New Year is still popular even today. Lunar New Year has enjoyed a history of about 3,500 years. In 2023, Lunar New Year will fall on Sunday, January 22nd and start a year of the Rabbit. Its traditional Chinese celebrations last for 16 days, from Lunar New Year's Eve to the Lantern Festival. Lunar New Year falls on different dates each year, but always falls between January 21 and February 20 of the international standard calendar. It is the most important festival in China (where it is known as Chinese New Year or Spring Festival), and it is also widely celebrated in South Korea (where it is known as Seollal), in Vietnam (as Tet), as well as Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, and other countries with a significant overseas Chinese population. ![]() Lunar New Year marks the beginning of a new year on China's traditional lunisolar calendar.
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