The 2025 Spring Festival Gala, Chinese New Year, highlights

With CCTV ...

[640],shadow=true,start=,stop=Chinese New Year (CNY), also known as the Spring Festival, is the most important traditional holiday in China, marking the beginning of the lunar new year. It is celebrated by Chinese communities around the world, as well as in other East Asian countries such as Taiwan, Singapore, and Malaysia. Here's an overview of Chinese New Year and its traditions:

Timing and Duration:
Lunar Calendar: Chinese New Year follows the lunar calendar, with the date falling between late January and mid-February each year. The exact date varies because it is based on the lunar phases.

Festival Period: The celebrations typically last for 15 days, beginning on the eve of Chinese New Year and ending with the Lantern Festival on the 15th day of the lunar calendar.

Traditions and Customs:
Family Reunions: Chinese New Year is a time for families to come together and celebrate. Many people travel long distances to reunite with their relatives, leading to the largest annual human migration in the world, known as Chunyun.

Cleaning and Decoration: In the days leading up to Chinese New Year, families clean their homes to sweep away bad luck and make way for good fortune. They also decorate their homes with red lanterns, couplets (duilian), and paper cutouts featuring auspicious symbols.

Chinese New Year's Eve Dinner: The New Year's Eve dinner, known as 'reunion dinner' (??? tunninfn), is a lavish feast shared with family members. Traditional dishes include fish (symbolizing prosperity), dumplings (symbolizing wealth), and various other symbolic foods.

Red Envelopes (Hongbao): Red envelopes containing money are given as gifts during Chinese New Year, especially to children and unmarried individuals. The red color symbolizes good luck and wards off evil spirits.

Fireworks and Firecrackers: Fireworks and firecrackers are set off at midnight on New Year's Eve and throughout the festival period to scare away evil spirits and bring good luck.

Lion and Dragon Dances: Colorful lion and dragon dances are performed in streets, parks, and public squares to bring prosperity and good fortune to communities.

Zodiac Animals:
Each Year is Associated with an Animal: Chinese New Year is symbolized by one of the 12 animals in the Chinese zodiac cycle. Each animal is believed to influence the personality traits and destiny of individuals born in that year.

Travel and Celebrations:
Spring Festival Gala: The Spring Festival Gala, broadcasted on Chinese television on New Year's Eve, features a variety of performances, skits, and musical acts. It is one of the most-watched television programs in the world.

Temple Fairs: Traditional temple fairs are held throughout China during Chinese New Year, offering food stalls, performances, games, and cultural activities for visitors to enjoy.

Chinese New Year is a time of joy, reunion, and renewal, filled with rich traditions and customs that have been passed down through generations. It is a celebration of family, community, and the arrival of spring, marking a fresh beginning and the promise of prosperity in the year ahead.

Related Videos

 

Featured Videos

BeiHai Park 北海公园, BeiJing – beautiful slideshow
A film by kinabaloo.com ...
Something different – great music – don’t miss it
Snow Patrol - 'Run' - acoustic cover - with Julia Westin and David MeShow - just awesome - connect your bestest amp - that celtic influence and those chord changes - wow! - gotta love this - soooo beautiful ... Bravo the sound engineers, as well as these two great artists; plus Snow Patrol, for creating this pure and poignant artwork. PLUS : 'Number 1' - with Touch & Go / Buddha Bar - there's something about the rhythm here that makes this special ...
Exploring rural China in ZuoBu village near ZhongShan City  探索中国农村
With Brenna (and her crew - Chance, Emry and Wynnie). What is life ? Life is a Chance (opportunity), go for it (tomorrow may never be the same). One has only one time to live one's dream ... With Living Asian ...
Two months in China’s south west 中国
Highlights of an eight week trip though Tibet, YunNan, SiChuan, GanSu and QingHai provinces (2007).
TianJin BinHai library – awesome architecture
With CN Walking ...
The beautiful DeTian Waterfalls, GuangXi province
DeTian Falls is the name of two waterfalls that straddle the international border between China and Vietnam, in the Karst hills of DaXin County. This film contains awesome drone footage. Don't miss it ! With Little Chinese Everywhere ...
TaGong 塔公, in a Tibetan part of western SiChuan province
Known as Lhagang! Tashi Delek in Tibetan. TaGong Monastery lies within beautiful hilly grasslands ...
Road trip – Kathmandu, Nepal to Lhasa, Tibet – don’t miss it
With Nepal360 ...
ShangHai walk in the Mid-Autumn Festival  江湖集市|外滩集市|上海中秋节
With Wei's Travel ...

Tag search ?