Chinese New Year

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Chinese New Year, also known as Spring Festival, is one of the grandest traditional festivals in China. You can also experience the lively atmosphere of Chinese New Year during your China tours. You can choose to plan your best China tours for Chinese New Year.

History of Spring Festival

As a vital component of traditional Chinese culture, Spring Festival embodies the profound heritage of Chinese civilization and documents the vibrant social and cultural life of ancient times. It originated in ancient rituals meant to mark and pray for the new year.

During the Han Dynasty, the first day of the first month of the lunar calendar has been designated as “Nian”, which is still in use today. After 1911, the Gregorian calendar was adopted, and January 1 of the Gregorian calendar was called “New Year’s Day”, while the first day of the first month of the Lunar Calendar was called “Spring Festival”.

Chinese Traditional Customs

The customs of the Spring Festival are varied and include the following. People will put up window flowers and spring couplets. They are all in red color, sending people’s wish to celebrate the old year and welcome the new. And before the festival, Chinese people will clean their houses, which is a good wish of the Chinese people to get rid of disasters and welcome good fortune.

People will also have New Year’s Eve dinner together. New Year’s Eve dinner, also known as a reunion dinner, is when families get together for a dinner on New Year’s Eve. The New Year’s Eve dinner is rich in dishes and the whole family gathers to celebrate the New Year together.

Ethnic Minority Traditions

China is a multi-ethnic country, and each ethnic group celebrates the New Year in a different way. The Tibetan New Year is the grandest traditional festival of the year for the Tibetan people. Every family makes a grains bucket called “Chema”. During the Spring Festival, the Zhuang people also hold songs, dances, ball games and other activities.

The Inner Mongolian people have always respected the color white, so they call the New Year’s Day “White Day”. Inner Mongolians wear new clothes and decorate their yurts. They also give whole cows or sheep to relatives and friends. In Bai customs, after midnight, youths would go to fetch water to show their diligence.

Traditional Chinese New Year Foods

Rice cake is a traditional food for the Lunar New Year. It is customary in southern China to eat rice cakes for the New Year to symbolize the sweetness of life in the new year. Dumplings are a staple food and local snack in northern China. The custom of eating dumplings at festivals mainly exists in the northern region. Eating dumplings is a unique way to express people’s wishes for good fortune and luck in the New Year.

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