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A quick guide to everything you need to know about this event
About Chinese New Year:
Chinese New Year (Chinese: 新年 Xīnnián), Spring Festival or the Lunar New Year, is the festival that celebrates the beginning of a new year on the traditional lunisolar Chinese calendar. In Chinese culture and East Asian countries, the festival is commonly referred to as Spring Festival (Chinese: 春節 Chūn Jié) as the spring season in the lunisolar calendar, making the end of winter and the beginning of the spring season.
When is it?
- Chinese New Year Eve (除夕 chú xī): January 31st, 2022
- Chinese New Year (春节 chūn jié): February 1st, 2022
Chinese Zodiac } Year of Tiger means
- It is believed that people born in the year of the tiger think agile, are inclusive, and possess leadership talents (if astrology is your thing)
What to do to get ready
- People do a deep cleaning of their house, purchase fireworks/firecrackers (if allowed); display a red diamond-shaped fu character (福 fú, ’blessings, happiness’) on the entrance or windows of home; do meal preps for the reunion dinner (年夜饭 nián yè fàn). What to wear
What to wear
- The colour red is commonly worn throughout the Chinese New Year. Traditional Chinese symbols such as clouds and peonies are widespread in rural areas.
What to say
- Xin nian kuai le/San nin fai lok: simplified Chinese: 新年快乐; traditional Chinese: 新年快樂. It literally translates from the greeting “Happy new year.”
- Gong xi fa cai/Gong hey fat Choi: simplified Chinese: 恭喜发财; traditional Chinese: 恭喜發財. It loosely translates to “Congratulations and be prosperous.” (comedy about greeting in Chinese New Year (from 2:35): www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_KpLrHCAx0)
What to eat
- A reunion dinner (年夜饭 nián yè fàn) is held on New Year’s Eve during which family members gather for a celebration, this meal is comparable to Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner.
Traditions:
Older family members will give red envelopes containing cash known as lai see (Cantonese: 利事), or hongbao (Mandarin: 红包), a form of a blessing and to suppress both the ageing and challenges that were associated with the coming year, to junior members of the family, mostly children and teenagers.
At midnight on Chinese New Year's Eve, people light up the firecrackers to welcome the new year. The firecracker lets out a loud popping noise. As they are usually strung together by the hundreds, the firecrackers are known for their deafening explosions that are thought to scare away evil spirits.
Chinese New Year in North America:
Many cities in North America sponsor official parades for the Chinese New Year. The dragon and lion dances are often performed during the Chinese New Year. Chinese dragons are a symbol of China’s culture, and they are believed to bring good luck to people, as well as will the lions bring good luck and fortune.
Calendar of upcoming local events that you can participate in
- Lunarfest Vancouver – More info here.
- Vernon Lantern Celebration on Friday, February 11th @ 7 p.m. – Grab tickets here.
Don’t worry if you can’t make it to an in-person event. Celebrate by tuning into channel 780- Fairchild TV on February 2nd at 9:50 p.m. to catch the Chinese New Year TV Special!
If you aren’t currently subscribed to this channel, it can be added to your TV packaging along with Phoenix (channel 781) in our Chinese Pack for $10/month.
If you’re looking for something live to watch, the Smithsonian American Art Museum and Renwick Gallery are also hosting a free Virtual Lunar New Year Celebration on February 5th at 7:00 a.m. There will be performances by the Madison Chinese Dance Academy and the traditional lion dance! Pre-Registration is required, which can be found along with more details of the event by going to this link.