The Chinese New Year or Lunar New Year is a major celebration in many Asian countries and their diaspora around the world.
The Chinese New Year, also called the Spring Festival, is approximately a two -week celebration that marked the first day of the Chinese calendar year, which lands on Wednesday this year.
Each Chinese New Year revolves around a 12-year cycle and is associated with an animal in the Chinese zodiac, which is then paired with any of the five elements: metal, wood, water, fire and earth.
This New Year marks the year of wood snakes.
While its origin in China, and the Chinese communities in countries such as Malaysia, Philippines and Singapore celebrates by the same name and similar traditions, others, such as in Vietnam and the Korean Peninsula, have a completely different name for their lunar new annual festivals.
How is the Chinese New Year celebrated?
The days they lead to the New Year spent thoroughly cleaning households to clear the space of any bad luck from the previous year.
This cleaning is believed to welcome happiness for the year ahead. Decorations are also increased, including lamps, paper cuttings and fresh color – all in bright red, which also calls for happiness.
The celebrations begin a family dinner to re -socialize on the eve of the New Year.
As the first day of the new year enters, homes are filled with family and friends who come by carrying gifts, oranges and red envelopes with small amounts of money, known as Ang Pao or Hongbao, for the little ones.
Greetings and good wishes, including more frequent phrases in Chinese Gong XI Fai, and Xin Nian Kuai Le, who are roughly translated into happiness, peace and prosperity for the upcoming days.
Beliefs are different from some restraints from wiping their homes or cutting hair and nails in the first few days because of the fear of losing the happiness that arose to visit New Year’s well -intentioned, according to Yvonne Goh, Malaysians of Chinese origin.
Traditional Lavovo Dances are central part of the celebrations because they call for happiness and reject evil spirits from homes, companies and jobs.
Traditionally, it was expected that married women would spend the first day of Chinese New Year with their laws, while the second day was reserved for daughters to visit their parents.
The third day is expected to be calmer and rest is a priority, while the fourth and fifth days are dedicated to the god of wealth. The sixth day of the celebration is said to see people get rid of old or unwanted things and continue their work.
On the seventh day, the Chinese goddess of Mother Nuwa has been believed to have created people.
Koreans celebrate ‘SEOLLAL’, Vietnamese Mark ‘Tet’
The Korean New Year (SEOLLALL) and Vietnam New Year (Tet) are also celebrated in their unique ways.
The Korean New Year is celebrated during a three -day period, where celebrations are traditionally focused on family gatherings, Korean traditional food and rituals. For both South and North Korea, this will be a year of green snakes believed to bring transformation, growth and development.
Some of the key aspects of the Korean ceremony include Sebae, the deep bow of respect that the younger generations performed to their elders as a way to wish them a happy New Year.
Usually sebae is performed while wearing traditional clothing called Hanbok. In return, the elders represent younger people with money tokens in envelopes called Sebaetdon.
The ancestral worship, known as Charye, is also an important part of the New Year. The food is placed on the table as a offer to the auction, and the deep arches are performed as a sign of respect.
Rice cake soup known as Tteokguk is also served with other dishes such as Korean dumplings. However, Tteokguk takes a special place on the dining room table, because it is served once a year for the belief that eating would make a person a year older.
Vietnamese New Year’s Aunt celebration, briefly for Tet Nguyen Day, which means “Festival on the first day”, is celebrated for three days, unlike the traditional 15 New Year.
The aunt is one of the most important holidays in Vietnam, where they are tidied up and the companies close for seven to nine days around the holidays.
The Vietnamese also gives a priority to spend time with family, paying respect to the auction, praying to the gods as well as resting before the start of the new year.
Before Aunt, the Vietnamese watches OG Cong, the day of the god of the kitchen, the deity that is believed to be managed by family affairs. On this day, family altars were cleaned, new offers are inserted, and incense is burned.
Cake wrap, also called a tet cake, cleaning and decorating homes with kumquats, peach flowers and apricot flowers are also an integral part of the preparations.
And the day before the Tet, the families prepare five fruit drawers that were set for ancestors on the altar, while visits to the ancestors’ graves were made with the offer.
Usually the first day of celebration is reserved for the father’s side of the family, while the second day is for the mother’s side.
Vietnamese culture also sets teachers in great view, with the third day of the New Year dedicated to honoring teachers.
Tibet’s ‘Losar’ and Mongolia’s ‘Tsagaan Sar’
In Tibet and parts of India with significant Tibetan Buddhist communities, Losar, which is translated into the calendar of the Tibetan Lunisolar in the new year, is celebrated around a similar time frame as the Chinese New Year.
However, the dates are a little different, with this year’s Losar celebrated on February 28 and is extended for a period of 15 days.
Losar is often observed through traditional and religious rituals performed in monasteries and temples, cultural events and family ties for shared meals and gifts.
Mongolia will celebrate his New Year on March 1, known as Tsagaan Sar, based on the Mongolian lunisolar calendar.
However, the preparations begin in advance, which includes cleaning houses and food preparation. Family, neighbors and friends are visited, offers are dedicated to deities, and the real New Year’s day begins walking in a particular direction based on a zodiac recipe.
