Chinese New Year History, Meaning, and Celebrations

Happy Chinese New Year!

This holiday is one of the most important celebrations of the Chinese calendar, with this year being the Year of the Ox. Not everyone may celebrate or know that much about this holiday, so let’s take a brief look into the history, meaning, and celebrations behind this wonderful time of year.History

Chinese months are based on the lunar calendar, with each month beginning on the darkest day. New Year festivities always traditionally start on the first day of the month, and continue until the fifteenth, when the moon is the brightest. This holiday is so important, many people in China take off weeks from work to prepare and celebrate the New Year.

Meaning

The meaning of Chinese New Year goes back to ancient times, where legend has it that Buddha himself asked all the animals to meet him on Chinese New Year. When only twelve came, he named each year after one. It is also believed that people born in each animal’s year will have some of that animal’s personality traits. This year is the year of the Ox, which is symbolic of hardworking attitudes and reliability because of its role in agriculture.

Celebrations

There are many ways people celebrate Chinese New Year. The most traditional include dressing up and wearing red clothes, decorating with poems on red paper, and giving children “lucky money” in red envelopes. The color red symbolizes fire, which according to legend, has the power to drive away bad luck. People also light fireworks as tradition, believing that the crackling flames will frighten off evil spirits.

There is also a large lantern festival held on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. In many areas, the highlight of this festival is the dragon dance, which you may have seen before or heard of. The dragon, which may stretch up to hundreds of feet long, is typically made of silk, paper, and bamboo and held aloft by young men who dance as they guide the beast through the streets.

To learn more about Chinese New Year 2021 and find out your Chinese Zodiac sign, click here.

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