Written by: Amna Naseem
Posted on: January 31, 2022 | 
| 中文
The Chinese families sit together for a dinner known as the 'Reunion Dinner' on the occasion of the Chinese New Year. (Pic credits CGTN)
The Chinese New Year, also known as the Lunar New Year, is the most important festival and celebration in China. Other East Asian and South Asian countries, such as Korea, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, Mauritius, and Vietnam observe the holiday in their own unique ways and traditions. This festival, also known as Spring Festival (mandarin: 春节, Pinyin: Chūnjié), is usually a one or two-week long holiday. People from Chinese ancestry and heritage from all over the world celebrate the New Year with their families and friends.
Preparations for the New Year celebrations in Malaysia (Picture credits to K Ti Lian Ker)
The festival's origins can be traced back to over 3500 years ago. Although the precise origins of Chinese New Year are unknown, it is thought to have begun during the Shang Dynasty (1600-1046 BC), when people performed sacrificial rites to their Gods and ancestors at the start of each year. Thousands of years have passed since the Chinese New Year was first celebrated. The festival gained the terminology 'Year' (Mandarin: 年, pinyin: Nián) in the era of the Zhou Dynasty (1046-256 BC). During the Wei and Jin Dynasties, aside from sacrificial rites, people started enjoying themselves. People used to gather up, clean their houses and stayed up late on the New Year's Eve.
Chinese New Year evolved into becoming a spring festival during the economically prosperous dynasties of Tang, Song and Qing. During this time, several customs were incorporated into the festival like getting together, use of firecrackers and eating dumplings; these are just a few of the key customs.
People thanking Gods for their bounties on the eve of the Chinese New Year in the 1900s in China
Like any other Chinese festival, the New Year festival is also filled with legends and myths. One of the most popular stories of this festival revolves around the mythical beast 'Nian.' On New Year's Eve, according to the legend, Nian would attack cattle, harvests, and people. An old wise man figured that the beast is scared of loud sounds (firecrackers and fireworks) and the colour red. To frighten Nian away, people began hanging red lanterns and scrolls on the windows. They also set off fireworks, and the beast Nian never appeared again.
In the Chinese tradition, the lunar calendar is represented with 12 zodiac animals. The order for these animals is Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog and Pig. Each year is represented by one specific animal, making it a loop chain of 12 years. The year 2022 is the year of Tiger. For instance, people who are born in the years of 1938, 1950, 1962, 1974, 1986, 1998, 2010 and 2022 belong to the Year of the Tiger. Besides animals, the five elements of nature (wood, fire, earth, water and metal) are also associated with these years.
People visit the Temple of Earth during the Spring Festival in Beijing, February 19, 2018 (Credits to VCG Photo)
The characteristics of the Zodiac animals are said to be transferred to the people born in the year of that animal. Besides, the Zodiac animals, one of the five elements (metal, water, wood, fire and Earth) with unique attributes is associated with the animal in the Zodiac cycle. The people born in that year are said to have the attributes associated with that Zodiac sign. For example, the year 2022 is the year of Water Tiger (and the last Water Tiger Year was in 1962) and people born in those years are hungry for power and thrill, crave attention and are short-tempered. The positive qualities are generosity, great interpersonal skills and being family-oriented. Similarly, 1950 and 2010 were the Metal Tiger years, and their characteristics include the natural ability to lead, rebellious and unruly nature, and sympathetic to those on their side. 1974 and 2034 are the years of Wood Tiger, and people born this year are creative, are eager to learn new things, have sharp memories and have strong friend circles. People born in the Fire Tiger years (1926, 1986, 2046) are strong-willed, naturally talented and less talkative. The qualities of people born in the Earth Tiger Years (1938, 1998, 1958) include generosity and natural inclination to help others, but they can be arrogant at times.
Prosperity Tiger Lou Sang. (Pic by TCH Foodworks)
The tiger, regarded as the king of all beasts, is a sign of bravery and strength in China as is the case in the rest of the world. The Year of the Tiger signifies bravery, unpredictability, generosity, power, rebellion, adventure, and leadership abilities, whether it is the year of Wood Tiger, fire, metal, earth and water. The people born this year follow their passions and ethics religiously. The Year of Tiger is generally regarded to be the year of offending the powerful Guardian God of the Year (Fan Tai Sui), so people born this year will face great difficulties and misfortune. The strong-willed Tiger people can fight misfortune by praying to the Gods of fortune, wearing an amulet, doing good deeds and wearing red dresses.
As a sign of good luck, children wear tiger-themed shoes and hats. Other things associated with good luck are lucky numbers such as 1, 3, 4, and lucky colors gray, blue, white and orange. Some of the historically important personalities that were born in the year of the tiger include Ludwig Van Beethoven, Queen Elizabeth, Karl Marx and Jiang Zemin.
Red lanterns are an integral part of Chinese New Year celebrations
There are several traditions that are followed by the people throughout China. Before the start of every Lunar Year, people clean their houses as an act of sweeping away all the bad luck from the previous year. During this time, the red color holds special importance as it is a symbol of luck, joy and happiness, while red lanterns are hung in streets and outside homes, representing celebration and vitality.
Another main tradition is to offer prayers to ancestors. The unity and togetherness are the salient aspects of this festival. All family members sit together to enjoy Lunar New Year's dinner known as 'reunion dinner'. Family and friends exchange gifts amongst each other. The most common gift is a red envelope which contains money and is often presented to children or elderly people. Tea, alcohol, fruits and sometimes confectionery is also gifted. People enjoy lion and dragon dances performed on the streets of China and in Chinatowns all around the world.
A Spring Festival celebration is incomplete without delicious food. In Chinese tradition all the dishes that are prepared for this day symbolize different meanings such as bringing wealth, good luck and family reunions. Some of the symbolic dishes of this festival are Nian Gao (mandarin: 年糕, Pinyin: Niángāo) also called rice cake. This cake is made from sticky glutinous rice and the flavors vary depending on the region. Rice cakes are more prevalent in South China, whereas sweet rice cakes are more popular in the north.
Dumplings, also known as Mantu or Mamtu
Although noodles are a common everyday Chinese cuisine, during the New Year celebrations it is prepared without cutting them. It is swallowed in one go rather than chewing it. The longer the noodle is, the longer life it represents for you. The spring festival is incomplete without dumplings. The whole family sits together and prepares them. It is believed that the more dumplings one eats, the wealthier one will be in the coming year, since the dumplings are constructed in the shape of ancient gold ingots. Some other important symbolic foods are spring rolls, steamed fish and sweet rice balls.
Nian Gao (Rice Cake)
The celebrations for Spring Festival begin long before the New Year's arrival. All the celebrants partake in making this holiday memorable. Festivals like these remind us of the importance and necessity of togetherness and harmony.
Long Life Noodles, also known as Shou Mian
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