Chinese New Year 2024: When and How to Celebrate it

This article contains information about when is the Chinese New Year — a colorful celebration that is worth seeing. For the Chinese people themselves, the holiday symbolizes the life cycle change and the unity of generations.

We offer you to learn Сhinese New Year customs and traditions. It will be interesting to everyone who plans to visit China or is interested in Chinese culture.

When is Chinese New Year’s day: date

In 2024, the New Year for the Chinese will begin on February 10. They call it "Chun Jie" — Spring Festival, as from this day nature begins to awaken.

The date of the Chinese New Year does not refer to a certain day of the calendar. It is determined by the lunar phases: the first day of the new year is the second new moon after the winter solstice.

The Chinese astrological calendar is based on the zodiacal circle of 12 animals and 5 natural elements. They create 60 different combinations, therefore the full cycle of the Chinese calendar is 60 years.

In 2024, according to the Eastern calendar, China will have its 4721 year, and it will be the year of the Green Wood Dragon.

If you are wondering how long the Chinese New Year is, it will be useful for you to know that traditionally it is celebrated for 14 days. In 2024, the celebrations begin on February 10 and end on February 24.

During the holidays, the Chinese put aside all business to fully devote themselves to the celebrations.

History of Chinese New Year

Legend has it that in ancient times, huge dragons lived in the coastal Chinese waters. Sometimes they came ashore and devastated settlements. The most fearsome was the huge dragon Nian, a fire-breathing monster with giant horns. All year long he hid in the depths of the sea, and on New Year's Day he crawled out onto the land and destroyed everything on his way. The peasants fled to forests to save their families. But one day a traveler came to the village who did not hide with everyone else. He knew the secret: the dragon is afraid of bright light, loud noises and the red color. So he started a fire in the hearth, painted the doors of the house red and began to set fire to the bamboo stalks. The dragon was frightened and did not bother people anymore.

This is the legend of the Chinese New Year, the history of which is about 3.5 thousand years old. According to one version, the holiday appeared during the Shang Dynasty (1600-1046 BC), when people began to celebrate the coming of the year with sacrifices in honor of gods and ancestors. The specific date was already fixed during the Han Empire (206 B.C. - 220 A.D.).

According to legends, it was then that the customs that have survived to these days, such as burning bamboo with a loud crackling sound, became widespread. Over time, other traditions of celebration appeared. People of the Celestial Empire began to gather with their families, decorate houses and streets, launch fireworks, arrange feasts, dance and make light shows.

How is Chinese New Year celebrated

The first five days of the celebration are intended for family gatherings and vacations. We will tell you where Chinese New Year is celebrated bright and cheerful, as well as how exactly the Chinese spend these days in different countries of the world.

Where Chinese New Year is celebrated

The holiday is celebrated in China, Taiwan, Mongolia, Vietnam and many countries of Southeast Asia. The biggest celebrations take place in China and in countries with large Chinese communities.

1. China

Unofficially, the celebrations begin with the Laba Festival (which falls on January 18 in 2024). On this day, it is customary for some families to commemorate deceased relatives and do commemoration ceremonies. People pray to ancestors and ancient deities for good luck and a good harvest. The houses are cleaned and gifts are prepared. Then comes the time of official celebrations. The Chinese are on vacation from the first to the seventh day of the New Lunar Year (February 10-17). Clean houses are lit with garlands and red lanterns, posters on doors, wishing prosperity and happiness, meet guests.

2. Korea

The Korean New Year is called Solnal and is celebrated for 3-4 days. It is customary for Koreans to gather as a family, make presents and perform funeral rites on family altars. They are often dressed in traditional costumes: in South Korea it is hanbok, in the DPRK — chosonot. Many Koreans go to the seashore to greet the first sunrise of the New Year. The holiday menu includes ttokkuk soup with ttok rice bread.

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3. USA

You'll be interested to know how Chinese New Year is celebrated in the United States, a country with an Asian population of more than 1.9 million which is the fastest growing ethnic diaspora. On the occasion of the Spring Festival, Chinatowns in San Francisco, Chicago and other cities are decorated, and traditional New Year's treats are added to the menus of local restaurants. In the state of New York from 2024 Chinese New Year will be celebrated in schools: classes on the holiday have already been canceled.

4. Great Britain

The UK is home to a large Chinese community that emigrated from Hong Kong and Southeast Asia in the 1950s and from China in the 1980s. Celebrations are accompanied by the same traditional attributes and ceremonies as in the holiday's homeland: red decorations, dance parades, and family celebrations. In London, the biggest Spring Festival events take place in Trafalgar Square, Leicester Square and in the Chinatown neighborhood, Chinatown.

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Chinese New Year: celebration traditions

The Chinese cherish holiday customs and honor traditions. We will tell you how to celebrate the Chinese New Year according to centuries-old traditions.

Red color in clothes and interior

For the holiday, the Chinese actively update their wardrobes, buying red colored items. The main color of the Chinese New Year is associated with happiness and wealth. Among the popular decorative elements are paper lanterns, carved patterns (jianzhi), folk luboka paintings (nianhua), calligraphic plates with wishes. Also on the holiday they hang images of the hieroglyph "Fu", which is turned upside down to make happiness "fall" into the house.

Envelopes with money

The tradition of giving gifts to children, in the usual sense, is not very common in China. The Chinese prefer to give children money ( certainly in a red envelope). Also, according to the old tradition, money is given to every child who crosses the threshold of the house during the two weeks of the holiday.

New Year's dishes and drinks

In northern China, it is customary to make dumplings (jiaozi). This word is consonant with the words "seeing off the old and welcoming the new". In addition, the shape of dumplings resembles bars of gold and symbolizes a wish for wealth. In the south of the country, "niangao", cookies made of sticky rice dough are prepared. For residents of these regions, this dish also symbolizes a better life with each new year.

As they are celebrating the Chinese New Year, so many days they go to visit each other. When Chinese people come to visit, they bring food with them. There may be any kind of gifts — fruits, dairy products, delicacies from other regions and countries. Even ordinary food and drinks are accepted with gratitude, especially by the elderly.

Dragon and Lion Dances

On Spring Festival days, processions of huge dragons and lions can be seen on the streets. In Asian culture, the lion stands for majesty, power and courage, while the dragon stands for wisdom, luck, happiness, energy and life changes. The ritual lion dance is performed by two people: one holds the head of the beast and presents its front paws, while the other holds its torso and hind limbs. The fundamental dance movements are borrowed from Eastern martial arts.

The dragon dance is an equally impressive sight. Participants hold the figure of the creature on a pole and move as if the dragon were making wave-like movements. Sometimes lighted candles are placed inside the frame, the flames of which shine through the fabric. Up to 50 people can participate in one such performance.

The dragon and lion dances often turn into a noisy, crowded procession.

Lantern Festival

According to Chinese New Year tradition, the celebration ends with the Lantern Festival, which in 2024 will be held on February 24. The tradition goes back more than two thousand years. People go out into the streets, walk and light lanterns of different sizes and shapes that symbolize hope, success and happiness. Another tradition is to glue notes with riddles to the lanterns. If a person guesses the answer to the question, he can receive a small gift from the owner of the lantern.

Signs for the Chinese New Year

Here we collected some signs that are popular among people celebrating Chinese New Year:

1. You should not clean the house or take a shower. It is believed that when you put the house in order, you can sweep out or pour out good luck with water. 2. You should not give purses as presents to anyone— it symbolizes the loss of money. 3. An extremely unsuccessful gift will be a thing with the number four (in Chinese it is consonant with the word "death"). 4. The number eight is considered to be lucky in China, so gifts with this number will be very useful. 5. It is not customary to give hats and watches, shoes, mirrors as gifts. 6. It is forbidden to use sharp objects — it is believed that they prevent the flow of money.

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