Spring day in China. Rituals for Chinese New Year

People are trying to spend new year holidays outside the state. Some go to the States, others to Europe, and others to the Middle Kingdom. Those who prefer the latter option are often disappointed because they do not know when New Year in China.

As a result, they arrive in the country either too early or too late, while a short vacation does not allow them to stay.

Chinese people celebrate New Year on the first full moon. It comes after the full lunar cycle and precedes the winter solstice. Let me remind you that this event falls on December 21st. As a result, Chinese New Year can fall on January 21, February 21, or any day in between.

In 2013, the Chinese celebrated the New Year on February 10, 2014 for them began on January 31, and 2015 on February 19.

How to celebrate New Year in China

In China, as in other countries, New Year is the main and favorite holiday. True, called Chun Jie.

Residents of the state have been celebrating the New Year for more than two thousand years. According to historians, the Chinese first began celebrating the New Year during Neolithic times. At that moment, they celebrated several holidays that were prototypes of the New Year.

In the Celestial Empire, the New Year is celebrated at the end of winter according to the Lunar calendar. The date is floating, so the New Year holidays begin differently.

After the transition to the Gregorian calendar, the inhabitants of the Celestial Empire call the New Year the Spring Festival. People call him “Nyan”. Let's talk more about the celebration in China.

1. The Chinese New Year celebration is a real festival that lasts for half a month. At this time, every citizen of the country can count on a week of official holidays.
2. China hosts theatrical performances, pyrotechnic shows, and spectacular carnivals. Each of these events is accompanied by the launch of fireworks and the popping of firecrackers. The Chinese spend a lot of money on New Year's attributes. And this is not without reason!

Myths of the New Year

As an ancient myth says, on the eve of the New Year, a terrible monster with horns erupted from the depths of the sea, devouring people and livestock. This happened every day until an old beggar with a cane and a bag appeared in the village of Tao Hua. He asked local residents for shelter and food. Everyone turned him down except for an elderly woman who fed the poor man New Year's salads and provided him with a warm bed. In gratitude, the old man promised to drive out the monster.

He dressed in red clothes, painted the doors of houses with scarlet paint, lit fires and began to make loud noises using “fire rattles” made of bamboo.

The monster, having seen this, no longer dared to approach the village. When the monster left, the villagers held a big celebration. From that moment on, during the New Year holidays, the cities of the Celestial Empire turn red with decorations and lanterns. Fireworks constantly light up the sky.

This is how a list of mandatory New Year's attributes was formed: firecrackers, incense, firecrackers, toys, fireworks and red items.

1. Regarding the celebration, we can say that on the first night it is strictly forbidden to sleep. The people of China watch the year at this time.
2. On the first five-day holiday, they visit friends, but they cannot bring gifts. Only small children are given red envelopes with money.
3. Among the festive New Year's recipes, the Chinese prepare dishes whose names are consonant with good luck, prosperity and happiness. Fish, meat, soybean curd, cake.
4. Within Chinese festival It is customary to honor departed ancestors. Each person makes small offerings of jewelry and treats to the spirits.
5. The New Year ends with the Lantern Festival. They are lit on every street of cities, regardless of size and population.

You have learned the intricacies of celebrating the New Year in China and are convinced that the Chinese New Year holidays are a colorful, amazing and unique event.

Traditions for Chinese New Year

In China, the New Year is celebrated differently from other countries in the world, since the Chinese remain faithful to their ancestors and do not forget New Year's traditions.

1. New Year's holidays are accompanied by general fun. Each family creates as much noise as possible in the house with the help of firecrackers and firecrackers. The Chinese believe that noise drives away evil spirits.
2. At the very end of the noisy celebration, the Festival of Lights is held. On this day, colorful events are held on city and rural streets with the participation of lions and dragons who engage in theatrical combat.
3. Celebrating the New Year in the Middle Kingdom is accompanied by the preparation of special dishes. All of them consist of products whose names sound the same as words symbolizing success and good luck.
4. Usually fish, oyster mushrooms, chestnuts and tangerines are served on the table. These words sound like wealth, prosperity and profit. Meat dishes and alcoholic drinks are found on the New Year's table.
5. If you are celebrating the New Year visiting a Chinese family, be sure to bring two tangerines to the owners of the house. Before leaving, they will give you the same gift, since two tangerines are the consonance of gold.
6. A week before the New Year, Chinese families gather around the table and report to the gods for the past year. The God of the Hearth is considered the main one. He is pampered with sweets and smeared with honey.
7. Before the celebration, five paper strips are hung on the door. They mean five types of happiness - joy, luck, wealth, longevity and honor.
8. Evil spirits are afraid of the color red. It is not surprising that during the New Year holidays it is red that dominates.
9. In many countries, it is customary to put up a Christmas tree for the New Year. In the Celestial Empire, the Tree of Light is erected, which is traditionally decorated with lanterns, garlands and flowers.
10. Chinese New Year's table characterized by abundance. True, they are in no hurry to use a table knife at the table, because this way you can lose happiness and good luck.
11. In China, New Year is celebrated until dawn. Adults are given objects that symbolize the desire for luck and health. These include flowers, sports memberships and lottery tickets. Beautiful and pleasant gifts.

Without traditions, it is impossible to imagine a real New Year in the Middle Kingdom. You now know when the New Year holidays are in China, how they are celebrated and what is offered. If you're tired of spending New Year's holidays at home, go to the Middle Kingdom. This country will give you the opportunity to diversify your life.

Video of New Year's Eve in a Chinese village

Guided by experience and memories, I will say that the Chinese New Year will provide previously unknown impressions, vivid emotions and a New Year's mood.

/New Year is a holiday that everyone looks forward to and prepares for in advance. New Year is a holiday that unites everyone: the poor and the rich, the smart and the fools, the light-skinned and those with a different skin tone, Europeans and Asians.

The New Year is awaited in both Europe and America. But it is from the east that the tradition of celebrating the Chinese New Year is firmly established, because, firstly, our people have few holidays, and secondly, celebrating the Chinese New Year is fun, bright and extraordinary.

Probably the only joyful holiday that has a centuries-old history. As you know, earlier, in distant Mesopotamia, it occurred during the flowering of nature and was celebrated in the month of March.

Perhaps this is how people, paying tribute to the awakening of nature, tied their life hopes and dreams. By the way, the celebration then lasted 12 days. That’s exactly how long the Mesopotamians walked, drank, had fun and didn’t work. They also gave each other gifts.

Chinese New Year, or Chun Jie, after 1911 is literally called “Spring Festival” and has been the main and longest holiday in China and other East Asian countries since ancient times. It has been celebrated for more than two thousand years.

Once upon a time, Chun (or “Nian” - means year), this terrible monster with horns on his head, who lived in the sea, got into the habit of crawling to the nearest village once a year in order to profit from something edible for the whole year. They were afraid of him and prepared in advance for his annual appearance. Taking with them the most important things, everyone, young and old, left the village.

And so it went on until a frail old man came to the village, as the legend says, with a silver mustache, a cane and a large bag over his shoulders (what is not our Santa Claus?). There was vanity and horror in the village, everyone was in a hurry to hide in the mountains from the monster and no one paid attention to the poor old man.

Only one kind woman, talking about the grief of the village, with a prayer asked her grandfather to quickly run from here to the mountains. Grandfather grinned slyly into his silver mustache and asked for a place to stay for one night. The woman allowed him to stay in view of the fact that the grandfather had already lived his life and would not be able to escape quickly.

But what a surprise it was in the morning for all the returning residents, when the grandfather, safe and sound, moreover, having managed to drive out the hateful Chun, rested peacefully on the threshold of the house. A fire was burning in the hut, crackling, the front door was painted red, and the remains of firecrackers lay on the floor. And the grandfather himself sat in a red painted robe.

It turns out that Chun is afraid of fun, fire, the color red and the sound of firecrackers! Since then, in China they began to celebrate the New Year cheerfully, noisily, with garland lights, firecrackers and other tinsel that drove out evil spirits.

Chinese New Year does not coincide with our Gregorian calendar, so the “Spring Festival” is celebrated on different dates every year. For example, in 2016, Chinese New Year occurred on February 8 (Year of the Monkey), in 2017 it begins on January 28 (year of the Rooster).

It is noteworthy that the Chinese calendar uses a sixty-year cycle that begins with the Year of the Wood Rat and ends with the Year of the Water Pig. This cycle began on February 2, 1984 and will end on January 29, 2044.

For changing Fire Monkey will come, that is, we live for two years under the patronage of two fire symbols. Each year corresponds to one of twelve animals, having one of five colors and belonging to one element.

The color that will bring good luck in 2017 is bright red. The Chinese themselves consider the Fire Rooster to be almost the most interesting animal in the entire eastern calendar.

Creative people striving for success will be especially lucky this year. Lovers will be able to find their happiness, lonely people will find their soulmate. The Rooster will especially help those who can selflessly throw themselves into the pool headlong, boldly cast aside the slightest doubts, will not be afraid of change, but, on the contrary, will open their hearts to everything new and unusual.

The Chinese call the night before the New Year “the night of meeting before separation,” when the whole family gathers at one table and discusses everything that has happened during the year. The table must have delicious traditional Chinese dishes: fish, soy cheese“doufu” (tofu in our language), dumplings (jiaozi). In this way, the Chinese give thanks for their generosity and spend the past year.

The main thing begins on the New Year itself and lasts 15 days. The Chinese are having fun, congratulating each other and giving small gifts decorated in red (usually money in a red envelope). The first five days they meet and visit each other.

Festive clothes are a must bright colors: red, gold, pink, green. The brighter the better. New Year's mass celebrations end on the fifteenth day of the lunar calendar.

Video

My curiosity about the symbols, about the life of China and its citizens has not yet dried up. And these days, when everyone around is celebrating the New Year, I would like to talk about how it is celebrated in China...
New Year is the most popular folk holiday in China, which is celebrated twice: on January 1, as in most Christian countries, and during the new moon - the so-called “Chinese New Year” - Chunjie (Spring Festival). New Year celebrations in China begin on the first day of the new moon and last 15 days until the full moon, i.e. 2015 will begin on February 19, symbols: Goat (Sheep), Tree. Blue.
The history of Chinese New Year celebrations goes back many centuries, and it does not have a fixed date. Through complex calculations, ancient Chinese astronomers calculated that their New Year would always occur between January 21st and the last days of February, when the end of the cold season comes. winter period, it becomes warm, the renewal of nature begins. Therefore, the New Year in China is called the Spring Festival, and since ancient times the Chinese have associated with it hopes for future family happiness, health and well-being.

In China, many traditions and New Year's superstitions are associated with the New Year. Before the New Year, five long strips of paper were hung on the door lintel, symbolizing the “five types of happiness”: luck, honor, longevity, wealth and joy.

According to ancient tradition, it is necessary to create noise and din when celebrating the New Year. The lighting of fireworks on New Year's Eve in China, as well as explosions of firecrackers, are associated with the legend that on New Year's Eve, evil spirits, expelled from different places, look for a new refuge, settle in it and all coming year cause all kinds of trouble to their owners. Before the invention of firecrackers and firecrackers, any household items that were at hand were used to create noise. From the 14th century n. e. in China there was a custom in New Year's Eve throw bamboo sticks into the oven, which, when burned, made a strong crackling noise and thereby scared away evil spirits. Later, these sticks were replaced by firecrackers and pyrotechnics, but the name remained the same.

There was also a belief that evil spirits are afraid of the color red, so on this day the color red predominated everywhere. Before the New Year, red strips of paper were glued to a variety of objects.
Some of the old New Year's rituals are a thing of the past in big cities, but are sometimes found in rural areas. These customs included sealing windows and doors with paper; the doors had to be closed to prevent evil spirits from entering the house.
According to established tradition, all household chores must be completed by the beginning of the holiday. Cleaning should start from the threshold and end in the middle of the home. By the evening before the holiday, all brooms, scrapers, brushes, buckets, rags and other equipment should be put away in places invisible to the eye.

It is also associated with the legend that on New Year's Eve, the gods bestow good luck on each home for the coming year, which is believed to settle as dust on the eve and during the celebration of this event. Therefore, it is believed that if anyone takes revenge or cleans up during the New Year, he runs the risk of throwing away his luck and bringing disaster to the house and all family members.

Instead of a Christmas tree in China they decorate the so-called Tree of Light with flowers, garlands and lanterns. On the gates of houses, in the most prominent places, paired inscriptions and pictures with wishes of happiness, health, longevity are certainly posted, and the windows are decorated with beautiful paper patterns.

Among the New Year's decorations at home, a place of honor was given to flowers, primarily peonies, which symbolized wealth and nobility. Daffodils and orchids, symbols of marital harmony, were very popular, especially in the south of the country. Custom required placing vases of flowers on both sides of family altars on New Year's Day. Many exhibited whole bouquets of peonies, orchids, quince branches and cinnamon, since the combination of their names, spoken out loud, could be perceived as a phrase with a good meaning: “the wealth and nobility of the jasper chambers.”

On New Year's Day, a so-called tree was set up in the house, from which money was shaken. They poured a pile of boiled rice into the tub, covered it with fruit, and put a persimmon on top, into which a cypress branch was inserted. Copper coins were tied to the branch using red threads. The “Money Tree” was intended to ensure wealth and prosperity in the coming year.
Oil lanterns, often with “lucky” hieroglyphs inscribed on them, were a mandatory part of New Year’s home decoration.

Usually, lanterns were placed next to auspicious pictures or inscriptions in rooms and on the walls of houses. Lanterns played a dual role: initially they embodied the noble power of light that dispersed dark forces, but over time they began to be perceived primarily as a decoration for New Year's celebrations.
A Chinese New Year's outfit must include red, be it at least socks or underwear: the color red, they believe, brings happiness.

In China, great importance is attached to the festive New Year's dinner, during which the whole family gathers at one table; seats at the table are also provided for those family members who, for one reason or another, are absent from the New Year celebration. The bountiful festive table set on New Year's Eve (or "chuxi" according to Chinese custom) is traditionally called "nanye fan" (which means "dinner on New Year's Eve").

According to local beliefs, as you celebrate the New Year, so it will turn out. Therefore, the Chinese carefully ensure that the festive table is bursting with a variety of treats. It is customary to prepare a festive dinner a few hours before the New Year, so that in the last hours of the old year you do not have to use a knife, which, according to popular belief, can accidentally cut off your happiness and good luck.
The main thing is that the table is plentiful. An indispensable decoration of the Chinese table is jiaozi. These are dumplings in which the whole family takes part in the preparation. Dumplings are a figurative embodiment of one of the main wishes: the birth of sons. And in the south of the country, for the New Year they prepare soup with dumplings and noodles, symbolizing longevity.

New Year's Eve dinner cannot do without dishes of chicken, fish and “doufu” - bean curd, because in Chinese the names of these products are consonant with words meaning “happiness” and “prosperity”.
Generally speaking, all dishes that are traditionally served for Chinese New Year carry their own symbolism. Everything that is served on the table has a certain meaning, for example, noodles mean longevity, red pepper indicates happiness, fish brings prosperity, and so on. Particular importance is attached to the dessert in the form of sweet rice cakes: once upon a time in rich families, a small bar of gold, silver or a precious stone was placed in one of them. As you may have guessed, the one who gets a pie filled with jewels finds happiness and good luck for the whole next year.

The dinner ends with “chusi” - the distribution of “happiness money” in a red envelope to the children. This is the only gift that is not given in pairs. Otherwise, the Chinese, following tradition, make paired offerings: this brings harmony to the family. The family spends the night together talking, playing or watching TV, waiting for the New Year to come. This waiting is called shousui.

And in the morning, people with their entire families go to congratulate relatives and neighbors, following the main rule: the time has come for reconciliation and forgiveness of all grievances.
In China, there is also a tradition that originated in ancient times: during the New Year celebration, when you come to visit, you present your hosts with two tangerines, and when you leave, you receive two other tangerines from your hosts. The emergence of this tradition is associated with the fact that in Chinese the pronounced “para mandarin” is consonant with the word “gold”.

In China, in general, on New Year’s Day it is customary to give gifts of paired items that symbolize unity and family harmony: two vases, two mugs, etc. It is not customary to give watches, especially to older people; give toys and children's things to those who do not have children or are still awaiting their birth. Usually new Year gifts Guests give them to the owners before leaving, sometimes even leaving them secretly.
The New Year is followed by three holidays: Chui, Chuer and Chusan, during which friends and relatives pay each other visits and give gifts. Then the holiday resumes, and the festivities continue for another two weeks.

During the festive performances, traditional lion and dragon dances are performed. The lion dance, symbolizing protection in the new year from troubles and misfortunes, spread throughout China and began to be performed during the Chunjie festival in the 14th-16th centuries.
The dance of dragons also has a long history. It was included in festive rituals back in the 12th century and expressed people’s admiration for the dragon.

The dragon, made of paper, wire and willow twigs, can reach 8-10 m. Its body is flexible and consists of a different, but always odd number of parts (9, 11, 13). Each part is controlled by one dancer using a pole; the undulating, writhing movements of the dragon require great coordination among all participants in the dragon dance.

Two weeks of festivities after the New Year, on the first full moon after Chuntjie, that is, on the 15th day of the first lunar month, the Yuanxiaojie festival (the festival of the first night of Emperor Wendi), dating back to the 2nd century BC, is celebrated. e. On this day, Emperor Wendi of the Western Han Dynasty took the throne, having won a difficult struggle with his rivals. Later, once a year on this day, he left the palace to have fun with his people.
Like the Spring Festival, Yuanxiaojie is celebrated within the family circle. For dinner, a special dish is always served - yuanxiao, which is snow-white balls of rice flour the size of a small bowl boiled in water. egg. Yuanxiao is a symbolic wish for happiness to the family. Another name for Yuanxiaojie is Dengjie (Lantern Festival). This is due to the spread in the 1st century AD. e. Buddhism in China. As a sign of respect to Buddha, on this day they visited the temple and lit lanterns. And today in Beijing parks on the Dengjie holiday, exhibitions and competitions of lanterns made of glass, paper, and silk are held.

China becomes a continuous street procession, and thousands of lit lanterns scare away evil spirits. On this day, it is customary to place steamed rice cakes on the altar, which stick to the hands - they are intended for the Spirit of the Hearth, or the Spirit of the Kitchen - Zaosheng.
After the Spring Festival, the brownie, as we would call it, flies to the sky and tells the souls of our ancestors how the past year went for their descendants. And so that he doesn’t say too much, they feed him sticky cakes...
This, in fact, ends the period of celebrating the Chinese New Year or Chunjie...

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New Year is celebrated twice in China. According to European tradition, it is celebrated on the night from December 31 to January 1 and is called Yuan Dan. Residents of the country celebrate it in the family circle, modestly and calmly. Since ancient times, it has been customary to celebrate the New Year in China on the second new moon after the winter solstice (on one of the days between January 21 and February 21).

New Year January 1

The country's main Christmas tree is installed and decorated in the center of Beijing, on the historical shopping street - Qianmen. Due to influence Western European culture and the influx of foreign tourists in the capital, the spirit of the New Year holidays is felt more than in other cities. Artificial Christmas trees are installed in large shopping and office centers. Dressed up Santa Clauses walk the streets. On New Year's Eve, people leave their homes and gather in the main square - Tiananmen, congratulate each other and admire the festive fireworks.

Traditions and rituals

New Year on January 1 is a young holiday in China. It does not have ancient established traditions. European culture had a great influence on its implementation.

On the eve of New Year's Eve, Chinese housewives clean their houses. It is customary to celebrate the holiday in new clothes, which should attract order and success.

According to Buddhist tradition, midnight is announced by the ringing of bells in temples. The bells ring 108 times. The Chinese believe that every person has six vices (greed, anger, stupidity, indecisiveness, frivolity, envy), which have 18 shades. With each ring of the bells, a person gets rid of one of the harmful traits. In the first minutes of the new year, the Chinese try to laugh and smile at each other so that the year passes happily and peacefully.

The tradition of decorating homes for the New Year is not common in all areas of China. In large cities, Christmas trees and New Year's decorations are installed in public places. Trees in parks and squares are decorated with multi-colored electric garlands.

The Chinese New Year's feast does not have any distinctive features. Housewives are serving a family holiday dinner. The main ingredients of national cuisine: rice, noodles, soy, chicken and pork. The most popular dishes: pork in sweet and sour sauce, gongbao chicken with chili pepper, mapo tofu with ground beef and vegetables, wontons - flour products stuffed with minced meat or shrimp, chow mein - fried noodles, Peking duck.

As desserts, there are traditional sweets on the tables: apples or bananas in caramel, peanuts in a sweet glaze, fried bananas in batter, egg tartlets, rice balls with honey, caramelized peaches. For the holidays, Chinese housewives like to bake fortune cookies with fortunes inside.

In China, it is not a common tradition to give each other gifts on January 1st. The Chinese send gifts and e-cards to their friends from Europe and countries for which New Year is the main holiday.

history of the holiday

The tradition of celebrating the New Year on the night of December 31 to January 1 came to China after the adoption of the Gregorian calendar in 1911. To avoid confusion between the European and Lunar New Year, on September 27, 1949, the government of the republic approved official names these holidays. The first day of the lunar calendar began to be called Chun Jie, and January 1 according to the Gregorian calendar - Yuan-dan, which literally translates as “beginning of dawn.” Yuan Dan became an official public holiday and a day off.

Cities and resorts

China is an amazing country with a lot to see. The New Year holidays here will bring unforgettable impressions and new emotions.

Capital of China People's Republic- Beijing - will amaze with its scale, active nightlife, an abundance of hotels and restaurants. Among tourists, excursions to the Great Wall of China are the most popular. This unique structure was built during the Ming Dynasty. It reaches 10 meters in height and 6,000 kilometers in length.

The famous attractions of the capital of the Celestial Empire include: Beihang and Jingshan parks, the Summer Imperial Palace (Yiheyuan), the Temple of Heaven (Tiantan), and the Gugong Imperial Palace. Beijing is home to the world's largest square, Tiananmen Square, Asia's largest zoo and aquarium.

The port city of Dalian is located in northeast China. He is famous clean air, magnificent pebble beaches, a combination of ancient Chinese and Japanese culture. There are many opportunities for tourists to spend an interesting and unusual holiday: excursions to mountain waterfalls, fishing, yachting, visiting golf and tennis clubs, shopping at Chinese bazaars. There are many sanatoriums in Dalyan that offer their clients ancient traditional methods diagnosis and treatment.

For lovers beach holiday will like Hainan Island, which is located in the tropical climatic zone. In the city of Sanya, they will be able to stay in a luxurious hotel on the shore of the bay and soak up the clean sandy beaches.

Located in the northwest of the Chinese province of Hunan natural Park Zhangjiajie, which is famous for its rich flora, fauna and unique landscape. IN winter time This place maintains a positive temperature, which will make walking comfortable. The park contains unique attractions: Cave Yellow Dragon and ancient Buddhist temple"Heaven's Gate"

An exotic type of New Year's holiday will be a trip to the cultural and spiritual capital of Tibet - Lhasa. Tourists will be amazed by the grandeur of the landscapes, ancient temples and monasteries.

Chinese New Year is one of the most important Eastern holidays, which is celebrated not only in Asian countries. It is also eagerly awaited all over the world, including in Georgia, after the completion of traditional New Year celebrations in both the new and old style.

Celebration date

New Year's Eve eastern calendar does not have a fixed date and is celebrated every year at different times. The exact time of Chinese New Year depends on the lunar cycle and occurs on the first new moon of the new year. Therefore, every year this holiday falls on one of the days between January 21 and February 21.

© photo: Sputnik / Isaev

The Chinese live according to their own calendar, so their calendar does not coincide with the generally accepted one in the world. Since ancient times, the chronology of China has been based on lunar calendar, which was formed around the 14th century BC, thanks to the development of astronomy.

According to the Chinese calendar, on February 5, the year 4717 will begin - the Year of the Yellow Pig, which will last until January 25, 2020, when it will be replaced by the Year of the Silver Rat.

The Chinese calendar uses a sixty-year cycle that begins with the Year of the Wood Rat and ends with the Year of the Water Pig. This cycle began on February 2, 1984 and will end on January 29, 2044.

For Easterners, the New Year marks a new round of time, a beginning, a renewal. On the day of the Chinese New Year, winter will meet spring and a new life cycle will begin.

Time to celebrate

In Eastern countries, New Year or Chun Jie, which literally means “Spring Festival,” is one of the longest holidays, which in the old days lasted a whole month. It has been celebrated for more than two thousand years.

© Sputnik / Alexander Imedashvili

These days, the Chinese have reduced the number of days off by almost half due to their busy lifestyle and busy work schedule. Therefore, the holiday ends on the fifteenth day - the grandiose Chinese Lantern Festival.

Traditionally, in China at this time, business life freezes for two weeks - the holiday is celebrated for 15 days, each of which has its own traditions and customs.

Wherever a Chinese person is, according to tradition, he must celebrate the New Year with his family, since this holiday is considered a family holiday and is called “Family Reunion Day” or “Meeting after Separation”

They also believe that on New Year's Eve the spirits of deceased ancestors are present at the table, who are also participants in the holiday.

© photo: Sputnik / Alexander Wilf

On New Year's holidays, people visit each other with congratulations, gifts in the form of money in red envelopes, and necklaces of coins and tangerines, as a symbol of wealth.

Throughout the New Year celebrations in China, cheerful folk festivals, fairs, costume dances and masquerade street processions are held.

In anticipation of the New Year, Chinese residents change old clothes for new ones, thoroughly clean their homes so that favorable energy circulates freely in it and does not stagnate. During cleaning, all the trash and unnecessary things accumulated over the year are thrown away.

Holiday treats are prepared accordingly. A favorite dish is dumplings, whose shape resembles an ingot of gold - a symbol of prosperity. Often houses are decorated with tangerines, always eight of them - a number symbolizing infinity.

In accordance with eastern horoscope, each year has its own patron, element and color. The patron changes on a twelve-year cycle, and the element and color - on a ten-year cycle.

The material was prepared on the basis of open sources.