Chinese New Year celebrations have their origin with end-of-harvest celebrations. People would offer thanks to gods for good harvests and entreaty for a good crop in the following year.
Chinese New Year to China is like Christmas to the West.
In the Gregorian calendar, Chinese New Year falls on different dates each year, usually a date between January 21 and February 20.
People following Gregorian Calendar often wonder why the date for Chinese New Year changes each year.
The Chinese calendar is a combination solar/lunar calendar, based on a number of rather complex astronomical calculations, including the longitude of the Sun.
Chinese New Year falls on the second new moon after the winter solstice (all months begin with a new moon).
Chinese New Year to China is like Christmas to the West.
In the Gregorian calendar, Chinese New Year falls on different dates each year, usually a date between January 21 and February 20.
People following Gregorian Calendar often wonder why the date for Chinese New Year changes each year.
The Chinese calendar is a combination solar/lunar calendar, based on a number of rather complex astronomical calculations, including the longitude of the Sun.
Chinese New Year falls on the second new moon after the winter solstice (all months begin with a new moon).
Chinese New Year celebrates the animal of that particular year as well as marking the New Year.
This year (2010) is the Year of the Tiger.
The Tiger is seen as vivid, lucky, engaging, and lively, meaning that 2010 should be an exciting year. Bravery and courage are other attributes of the Tiger, leading it to represent protection against evil in the coming year.
Most representations of the tiger have a special Chinese character stylized on the forehead.This character, "wang", means king.
In China, the tiger is king of the jungle and it is believed that the black stripes in the orange fur illustrate this.
This year (2010) is the Year of the Tiger.
The Tiger is seen as vivid, lucky, engaging, and lively, meaning that 2010 should be an exciting year. Bravery and courage are other attributes of the Tiger, leading it to represent protection against evil in the coming year.
Most representations of the tiger have a special Chinese character stylized on the forehead.This character, "wang", means king.
In China, the tiger is king of the jungle and it is believed that the black stripes in the orange fur illustrate this.
Traditions
Preparation
To prepare for the New Year, the Chinese cut their hair, pay their debts, and buy new clothes. They clean their homes completely, "sweeping of the grounds" to remove any bad luck and make way for the incoming year of good luck, happiness, and wealth.
Colorful celebrations include street parades with dancing lions, martial arts dancers, and fireworks to frighten away evil spirits and bad luck. Red, a color of joy, is the main color for clothes and decorations.
Red envelopes
One of the traditions during Chinese New Year is the giving of red envelopes and red packets called “Yang Pan”.
These yang Pan are usually passed out during the Chinese New Year’s celebrations, from married couples or the elderly to unmarried juniors.
Red packets almost always contain money, usually varying from a couple of dollars to several hundred. Per custom, the amount of money in the red packets should be of even numbers. The number 8 is considered lucky (for its homophone for “wealth”), and $8 is commonly found in the red envelopes in the US.
These yang Pan are usually passed out during the Chinese New Year’s celebrations, from married couples or the elderly to unmarried juniors.
Red packets almost always contain money, usually varying from a couple of dollars to several hundred. Per custom, the amount of money in the red packets should be of even numbers. The number 8 is considered lucky (for its homophone for “wealth”), and $8 is commonly found in the red envelopes in the US.
Symbolic Chinese Foods
1. Eggs
2. Noodles
3. Fish
4. Duck
5. Chicken
6. Seeds (lotus seeds, watermelon seeds, etc)
7. Fruit - Tangerines, Oranges and Pomelos
8. Cake
9. Vegetables
10. Symbolic Recipes
- Kung Pao Chicken
- Longevity Noodles
- Peking Duck
- Red Cooked Chicken or Soy Sauce Chicken
- Sago Tarts
- Sweet and Sour Fish
- Tea Eggs
Flowers
The following are popular floral decorations for the New Year and are available at new year markets.
| Floral Decor | Meaning |
| symbolizes luck | |
| Kumquat symbolizes prosperity | |
| Narcissus symbolizes prosperity | |
| Chrysanthemum symbolizes longevity | |
| Bamboo a plant used for any time of year | |
| Sunflower means to have a good year | |
| Eggplant a plant to heal all of your sickness | |
| Chom Mon Plant | a plant which gives you tranquility |
The Chinese new year celebrations will be end with Lantern festival
Gung Hay Fat Choy! Wishing you prosperity!
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