In two days' time, I along with other Chinese, Koreans, Japanese and Vietnamese will be celebrating the lunar new year. In Malaysia and many places in the world, we refer to this festival as the Chinese New Year but in actual fact other people celebrate it as well. Below is information about this festival.
The first day is "Family Day" and all family members gather together for a feast. If a member of the family can't attend the celebration, a place at the table is still set for them.The last day of the New Year is celebrated with tens of thousands of paper lanterns, called "The Feast of Lanterns". They are made in all shapes, colors and sizes and are hung on porches and in yards.
"Chinese New Year" begins on the first day of the first moon, which means that it can begin any time from January 21 through February 19. It is a festival celebrated in Asian communities all over the world. Chinese New Year or Spring Festival (Chun Jie), which begins at the second New Moon after the winter solstice, is the most important traditional festival and lasts fifteen days. This year the new year begins on the 18th of February based on the lunar calendar.
The Chinese Lunar Calendar is a combination of mathematics and symbols that date back to the twenty-seventh century B.C. Twelve animals are associated with the calendar - the rat, ox, tiger, hare, dragon, serpent, horse, ram, monkey, rooster, dog and boar.
Asians begin preparing for Chinese New Year weeks ahead by cleaning their houses and buying new clothes. Preparation begins several weeks ahead of time and involves a lot of cleaning, cooking, buying gifts and clothes, and other special preparations. Cleaning is important in order to sweep away any bad luck or evil spirits from the old year. One must NOT sweep during the first day of the New Year festival because one might sweep away the good luck for the new year. Many people don’t cook for the first five days so lots and lots of food must be prepared including JiaoZi (Chinese Dumplings).
Once the house is clean it is decorated with red banners that say "good luck" in Chinese symbols. The home is filled with fruit and flowers - intended to bring good luck in the year ahead. It’s an exciting, fun festival. The festive dinner on New Year’s Eve is usually a family reunion and often includes chicken (ji in Chinese, which sounds much like the word meaning "auspiciousness") and fish (yu in Chinese, which sounds much like the word that means "wealth" and "surplus"). People like to wear red clothing because red is a good luck color.
Fireworks are an important part of the celebration since the noise chases away evil spirits – besides being lots of fun. Red is the color meaning "joy" and "luck" so red ribbons and flags are waved. (Sometimes people decorate their doors and window frames with red paper or paint.) Children often are given red packets with money which bring luck to the giver and to the receiver.Families like to stay up late playing board games, or cards, or watching television specials. Midnight brings fireworks!
The first day is "Family Day" and all family members gather together for a feast. If a member of the family can't attend the celebration, a place at the table is still set for them.The last day of the New Year is celebrated with tens of thousands of paper lanterns, called "The Feast of Lanterns". They are made in all shapes, colors and sizes and are hung on porches and in yards.
When visiting family or friends during the two-week long Chinese New Year celebration, be sure to bring them a bag of oranges and tangerines which are symbols for abundant happiness.
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