14 February is a holiday that marks the start of the Year of the Tiger on the Chinese Lunar Calendar. It is considered to be one of the most important holidays for Chinese families and is celebrated with big family gatherings, gift giving, the eating of symbolic foods and festive decorations – all focused on bringing good luck for the new year and celebrating the coming of Spring.

When is the

Chinese New Year?

The start of the Chinese New Year changes every year since it is dictated by the lunar calendar. The Gregorian or solar calendar, which is based on the Earth’s movement around the sun and has a fixed number of 365 days a year (366 during a leap year), is the most widely used calendar system in the world and has been the official calendar used in China since 1912.

But in China the lunar calendar is still used to determine traditional holidays like the Chinese New Year. Since the lunar calendar is based on the phases of the moon, which has a shorter cycle than the sun, Chinese New Year is never on the same day each year, but typically falls somewhere between 21 January and 20 February. For this year the Chinese New Year will fall on 14 February.

Clean house

and new clothes

Prior to the first day of the New Year it is customary for families to thoroughly clean their homes from top to bottom. Doing this is said to clear out any bad luck from the previous year and to ready the house to accept good luck for the coming year. All cleaning must be finished before New Year’s Day so there is no chance of accidentally throwing out the good fortune of the new year. Before New Year’s Day, people buy new clothes or cut their hair in order to have a fresh start. Wearing black is not allowed due to its association with death, however, wearing red is encouraged as the colour is associated with warding off bad spirits.

Decorate the house

Another popular custom is to hang up signs and posters on doors and windows with the Chinese word fu written on them, which translates to luck and happiness. Buying flowers for the home is also commonplace since they symbolise the coming of spring and a new beginning. In Chinese neighbourhoods, special lunar New Year flower markets often sprout up during the days prior to the New Year.

Eat with your family

On the eve of the Chinese New Year it is customary to visit with relatives and partake in a large dinner where a number of specific foods are served.

Families eat eight or nine dishes and they choose these numbers as they are considered lucky numbers. The Chinese word for eight is baat [in Cantonese], which rhymes with faat, the word for “prosperity”. The word for nine means “long-lasting”. Some popular foods include oranges (because they are perfectly round, symbolising completeness and wholeness) and long noodles (served to symbolise long life). Sticky rice cakes and sweets are also served and are tied to a story about the Kitchen God – a Santa Claus-like figure who reports to the Jade Emperor in heaven on whether families have been good or bad through the course of the year. According to legend, when families serve the Kitchen God sticky, delicious foods, his mouth gets stuck together and therefore he cannot report any bad things about the family to the Jade Emperor.

How long do Chinese

New Year celebrations last?

Celebrations can actually last up to a month, especially in China. Originally the celebrations lasted for lengthy amounts of time because China was a very agriculture-based country so farmers took the whole month off to rest since crops couldn’t be planted during the winter. Nowadays most families celebrate the New Year for about two weeks.