Pay A New-year Visit
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Festivities Schedule of Chinese New Year
Chinese New Year is a traditional festival with a long history. It is the most important holiday for Chinese people, thus much attention has been paid to it since ancient times. Its preparation starts seven days before Chinese New Year’s Eve, from the twenty-third day of the twelfth lunar month. The following shows you the schedule for the interesting festivities and customs during the festival. The dates are listed according to lunar calendar. Dec. 23rd (Jan. 20, 2017) In Chinese traditional culture, the Kitchen God will report to the Jade Emperor about the daily affairs of each family. Based on the report, the Jade Emperor will decide whether or not to reward this family. People will sacrifice candy, water, beans to the Kitchen God to flatter him, so that he can report good things about the family. As a result, the Jade Emperor may not punish the family, which can live safe and sound during the next year. On the Festival's Eve, the Kitchen God will go back to the human’s world, so he will get a warm welcome from human beings. After this sacrifice on this day, the ancestors will be worshipped by the whole family, and the sacrifice remains in place till December 30. Dec. 24th (Jan. 21, 2017) Cleaning is done on this day. All vessels, curtains, beddings and every corner need to be cleaned, and people hope to welcome the festival in a clean environment. In Chinese, cleaning the dust means driving away the old things. Dec. 25th (Jan. 22, 2017) In some places, bean curd will be made on this day. It is said that the Jade Emperor will come to inspect the human world to check whether the report from the Kitchen God is true. In order to testify that what the Kitchen God said is true, people eat cheap bean curd to show the Jade Emperor that they are thrifty and they live a poor life. Thus they can avoid punishment from the Jade Emperor. Dec. 26th (Jan. 23, 2017) In ancient China, most of the common people lived a poor life and could only eat pork during this festival. So on this day, butchering pigs fed by every family or purchasing pork was the most main activity; as a result, they could reserve the pork for the festival. Although modern people can eat meat in daily life, people still like to buy meat on this day to keep to the tradition. Dec. 27th (Jan. 24, 2017) Shopping is the most important activity on this day. People will purchase fireworks, couplets, toys and so on. They also buy new clothes for the next year. In the folk custom, people will also have baths and wash all the clothes in the hope, of removing the bad luck from the previous year. Dec. 28th (Jan. 25, 2017) Making steamed breads and pasting the paper-cuts are done on this day. People will prepare the food for all the days from the starting of Chinese New Year (Jan. 1 according to lunar calendar) to Lantern Festival (Jan. 15), for in old times, nothing could be bought during that period. Also on this day, people will decorate the rooms by pasting paper-cuts on the windows. Although now the supermarkets or shopping centers are still open and people can easily purchase anything during the holiday, it is still a habit for people to prepare various kinds of food before the festival, especially in the rural areas. Dec. 29th (Jan. 26, 2017) On this day, people will worship ancestors at their tombs. Dec. 30th (Jan. 27, 2017 - New Year’s Eve) This is the most important and cheerful day. People will paste the Spring Festival Couplets, Gods of Gates and Chinese New Year pictures. Even though, modern people seldom do these things in time order as ancient people did, they still keep the custom of pasting the couplets. When all couplets are pasted, the festive atmosphere will be filled in every corner in China. Reunion Dinner, Chinese New Year TV gala and staying up all night on its Eve are also traditional customs. Similar to the Christmas Dinner in western countries, the Reunion Dinner has significant meaning to Chinese people, because it is the time that all family members reunite together. With the reunion dinner, the whole family welcomes a lunar new year happily. The most important food in this dinner is the dumpling, which is very popular in the northern part of the country. Niangao and rice dumplings are eaten by people in southern part of the country. Besides, various Chinese New Year foods are served on that night such as fish, spring rolls and so on. After the dinner, it is the happiest time for the younger generations, because they can get red envelopes from the older generations. At midnight, many places will strike bells to pray for the next smooth year, and people will set off fireworks. Jan. 1st of Chinese New Year (Jan. 28, 2017) Setting off firecrackers to chase off bad spirits is the first thing to do after people get up on the first day. After the firecrackers, it is time for the first meal of the year, which is as important as the reunion dinner for most Chinese people. Most people choose to eat dumplings, in hope of making fortune in the future, because the shape of the dumpling is similar to the gold ingots used as currency in ancient time. People in Fujian prefer to eat noodles, because the noodle is the symbol of longevity in local culture. The first day is also a time to pay a New Year’s visit as well as send blessing to the senior members of extended families and other relatives. Now the methods of sending blessing are changing and many modern methods are used such as text messages and e-mails, as well as phone calls. Jan. 2nd (Jan. 29, 2017) People will worship the God of Wealth on this day. It is also the time for married daughters to visit their birth parents and relatives, because in daily life in ancient China they could not go back to their birth families. Even though daughters now can go to visit their birth parents at any time, this custom remains. Jan. 3rd (Jan. 30, 2017) This day is also called Goat Day, on which people cannot kill the sheep or goats. In southern China, people think quarrels can easily happen, so they do not visit each other on this day. Jan. 5th (Feb. 1, 2017) This day is also called Po Wu, on which people will eat dumplings and set off firecrackers. Jan. 7th (Feb. 3, 2017) In Chinese mythology mankind was created on this day, so this day is the birthday of humanity. On this day, people will use seven kinds of vegetables and rice to make porridge in celebrating their birthday.
10 Disappearing Chinese New Year Traditions
China's most important traditional festival, Spring Festival, has produced numerous folk customs. But in China's rush for development old ways are being neglected. Only some traditions remain, and some are disappearing... 1. Offering Sacrifices to the God of the Kitchen Stove According to an ancient legend, the God of the Kitchen Stove would go to Heaven on the 23rd of the 12th month of the Chinese lunar year, and report to the Jade Emperor on what each household did in the past year. Chinese put a pair of couplets on the kitchen entrance, in hope that the God of the Kitchen Stove would put in a good word for them before the Jade Emperor. The couplets read: 'Speak of Good Deeds in Heaven, Keep Peace on Earth.' The sacrifice-offering ritual is held on the 23rd (in North China) or the 24th (in South China) of the 12th month of the Chinese lunar year, after which people enjoy delicious sacrificial objects such as sugar cakes, deep-fried pancakes, and bean-curd soup. It was said that the God of the Kitchen Stove would only say sweet things about each household after tasting sugar cakes. Many people from the villages have moved into modern houses without kitchen stoves now, like their counterparts in the cities, therefore Kitchen Stove God rituals are rarely seen now. 2. Getting Married Without Choosing a Specific Date It's believed by folks that nothing is a taboo for gods and humans between the 23rd and 30th of the 12th month of Chinese Lunar year, and there's no need to choose a specific date for getting married during these days. As a result most young people who worked in other cities used to hurry home and get married during these days. Now that Spring Festival is a public holiday in China, many couples get married during the Spring Festival, not because there's no taboo, or auspiciousness of dates, but because they have much more free time. 3. Fermenting Flour on the 28th of the 12th Lunar Month The old saying goes that it's time to get the dough fermented on the 28th of the 12th month of the Chinese lunar year. Then each household was busy preparing food for the Spring Festival, especially steamed buns. In the past dough with yeast soon went bad, therefore people waited until two days before the Spring Festival to ferment the dough. This custom is rarely seen now because of the availability of baking powder, refridgerators, and bakeries. 4. Steaming Buns on the 29th of the 12th Lunar Month It was a custom for old Beijingers to prepare the main dishes for the Spring Festival on the 29th of the 12th month of Chinese Lunar year, including steamed buns stuffed with red bean and red date paste. It was considered unlucky by folks to steam buns and cook dishes from the 1st to 5th of the 1st month of the Chinese lunar year, therefore the people had to prepare steamed buns for the whole week on the 29th of the 12th month of Chinese lunar year. Steamed buns were usually decorated with red dots, adding luster to the Spring Festival. Now it's easy to buy steamed buns during the Spring Festival, but it's very rare to find ones with red dots. 5. Opening-Door Firecrackers on Chinese New Year Morning Traditionally each Chinese household strived to be first to set off "opening-door firecrackers" at 12:00 AM, on the 1st day of Chinese New Year. It was also a tradition to set off one string of small firecrackers first, followed by three big firecrackers, which symbolized ringing out the old year and ringing in the new year. The louder the three firecrackers, the better and luckier for business and farming in the coming year. Now setting off firecrackers is banned in many large cities in China, so you can only see this custom in more provincial and rural areas. 6. No Using of Brooms on Chinese New Year's Day It's a custom to pay a New Year's visit to relatives and receive good-luck money on the 1st day of the Spring Festival. So there's lots of trash from entertaining guests. However, it's considered unlucky to use a broom to sweep the floor, dump trash, or splash water on that day (or the 2nd day). Folk "spring clean" on New Year's Eve, as part of saying goodbye to the past year, which is still a popular custom, but they don't want to "sweep away their new Year luck". Now this custom is rarely seen in cities, but is still popular in rural areas villages. 7. Offering Sacrifices to the God of Fortune It's a custom for folks to offer a sacrifice to the God of Fortune on the 2nd day (in North China) or the 5th day (in South China) of the Spring Festival. The sacrifice-offering rituals are held in stores or at home, with a whole pig, goat, chicken, duck, or live carp as sacrifices, for luck in the coming year. According to folklore, the God of Fortune refers to the Five Roads God. The Five Roads are the South Road, the North Road, the Central Road, the West Road, and the East Road. Now many superstitions, and much folklore like this, are dying out in China, with more and more people leaving their roots in the countrysiide and being educated in the cities. 8. Scarlet Dog Day — No Going Outside on New Year Day 3 Scarlet Dog Day (赤狗日), on the 3rd day of the Spring Festival, is an unlucky day according to folklore. The legend went that the Scarlet Dog was the God of Anger, and whoever met him would have bad luck. So Chinese would neither pay New Year's visits nor receive any guests on this day. Instead, they superstitiously stayed at home all day long. Modern Chinese people have done away with this feudalistic superstition, and visit friends on the 3rd day of the Spring Festival. 9. Greeting the God of the Kitchen Stove As mentioned above, folk send the God of the Kitchen Stove to Heaven on the 23th of the 12th month of the Chinese lunar year. On the 4th day of the Spring Festival they welcome him back by burning incense and paper representing money, setting off firecrackers, and offering sacrificial objects such as meat and fruits. The legend also went that the Jade Emperor would send another god to inspect each household at the time of the return of the Kitchen Stove God, so it was not suitable for folks to leave home on the 4th day of the Spring Festival either. Nephews, however, were allowed to visit their aunts then. Now it's very rare for Chinese to offer sacrifices to the God of the Kitchen Stove, let alone greet him back from heaven. 10. Sending the God of the Poor Off The legend went that the God of the Poor was the son of King Zhuan Yu. He was very short and thin, and was fond of dressing in rags and drinking porridge. Even though folk sent him new clothes, he would first tear them and then wear them. As a result, folk would send him off to heaven rather than see him in rags on the earth on the 6th day of the Spring Festival. It was very popular for folk to see the God of the Poor off during the Tang Dynasty (618–907), however the custom is almost gone now.
China Festival
With time-honored history of more than 5000 years,China enjoys many traditional festivals, all of which are the great reflection of profound Chinese culture. Chinese Festival page introduces the most important traditional festivals in China, ranging from Spring Festival, Lantern Festival, Tom-sweeping Day to Dragon Festival and Mid-autumn Day. Each festival has its own significance , feature and celebration forms. After discovering them, you will get more ideas about Chinese culture. Spring Festival Spring Festival is one of the most important and ceremonious festival in China, which is from the first day to the 15th day of the first month in the lunar calendar. Spring Festival to China, what Christmas to America. About one month ahead of the spring festival, people will get preparation for it, such as cleaning house, do shopping and making storable food. For celebrating the festival, people will hang couplets and red lanterns onto the doors, and play firecrackers delightfully, and everywhere is permeated with holiday atmosphere. Another important thing for the Spring Festival is family reunion and people working far away from home will get back home for family reunion. On the family union dinner, people will usually enjoy the appetizing family reunion dinner together. On the family reunion dinner, the young express best wishes and toast for the elder's health and happiness. On the family reunion dinner, children will get the lucky money from the elder after saying "Happy New Year" to the elder. On the first day of the festival, children will dress their new clothes and pay a new year's visit to their relatives, then they will give them new year's money. In the following days, people will pay a new year's visit to relatives and friends, and expressing their good wishes to the next year to each other. The last day, on the 15th day of the festival, would be the world-famous Lantern Festival. Since Spring Festival is a traditional Chinese festival, there is still some taboos about it. During Spring Festival, unlucky behaviors and words should be avoided because those bad things may happen if these words are spoken out. Such words as bad, dead, kill, ache and the likes are not welcome. Moreover, water should not be sprinkled out of the house, which may bring bad luck to the new year. Also when holding the fragile articles like plates, cups and glasses, the one should be particularly careful and never break them. What is more, neither sweeping the floor nor cutting hair is welcome on the spring festival. While different regions have different taboos on the Spring Festival. Mid-autumn Day Mid-autumn day, anther traditional festival in China, is celebrated on August 15th in lunar calendar every year. On the mid-autumn day, the full moon will appear, which symbolizes reunion in Chinese cultures, so the mid-autumn day is also called Reunion Festival. Since mid-autumn day is an important festival in China, there are some traditional customs for this festival. Customs for Mid-autumn Day Moon Worship Moon worship is a quite time-honored tradition in China, which could be traced back to Zhou dynasty in ancient Chinese history. This tradition has been passed down from generation to generation. In modern times, people usually display moon cakes as well as other fruits on the table in the yard. After moon has eaten the moon cakes, they will retreat the table and eat the worshiped moon cakes with family members to pray for health and happiness. Appreciating the Moon Appreciating the moon is another activity for the mid-autumn day. On the night of mid-autumn day, the moon is particularly round and bright. Families will sit together and appreciate the moon while eating moon cakes. On this night, people far away from home would be quite homesick and they would express best wishes for their family while watching the moon alone. Eating Mooncake The delicately-shaped moon cake is a must-have for the Mid-autumn Day, which is made of flour filled with various kinds of fillings like nuts, eggs, beans and fruits. Since full moon symbolizes family reunion in Chinese reunion, moon cakes are usually round-shaped. That is why eating mooncakes on mid-autumn day could arouse the missing of distant relatives. Lantern Festival Lantern Festival is another important festival in China, which is celebrated on the 15th of the first month in lunar calendar every year. Lantern festival marks the end of the Spring Festival. The lantern festival of 2013 falls on February 24. There are some traditional customs and activities for lantern festival, which has been introduced as follows. Watching Lanterns On the Lantern Festival, splendid lanterns show would be displayed and lanterns of different shaps could be seen everywhere, which attracts uncountable visitors. Accompanying lanterns, various fireworks would be lighted, which explore and disperse into different shapes in the dark sky successively. Everywhere is permeated with delightful atmosphere on the night of lantern festival. Guessing Riddles Guessing lantern riddles is another important recreational activity in the Lantern Festival. Each lantern contains a riddle and people will guess it, which is very interesting. If someone has an answer to a riddle, he can pull the paper from the lantern and ask the organizers to verify the answer. If the answer is right, then little gifts would be presented. Since this intellectual activity is very exciting and interesting, guessing riddles on the lantern festival is quite popular among many people, old and young, man and women. Folk Dances Another important activity for the festival is the exciting folk dances, such as Lion Dance and Walking on the Stilts. In the lion dance, two dancers, on for the lion's head, the other for the loin's tail, are dressed up like big lions. The dancers take coordinated and rhythmic steps and perform with the music of loud gongs and drums. Sometimes, it jumps, sometimes it roars. Another representative folk dance during the lantern festival is walking on the stilts. The performers' feet are bended onto the stilts and they walks on stilts. Dressed up gorgeously, the performers impersonate different animals, such as monks, clowns, fishermen and the likes, which appeals many visitors. Eating Yuan Xiao As for food, people usually eat ball-shaped sweet dumplings in this festival,also called Yuanxiao in Chinese, which is made of glutinous rice flour filled diversified fillings. So the Lantern Festival is also called Yuanxiao Festival. Dragon Boat Festival Dragon Boat Festival, another traditional festival in China, falls on the May 5th in lunar calendar every year, which is celebrated to commemorate an ancient patriotic poet named Qu Yuan. Customs on this festival are listed as follows: Eating Rice Dumpling (Zong zi) On the Dragon Boat Festival, people will eat the triangle-shaped rice dumplings, zong zi literally in Chinese, which is made of glutinous rice filled with different kinds of fillings like dates, nuts and beans. Many families made rice dumplings at home by themselves. After the rice with fillings is prepared, people will wrap the rice with reed leaves into triangle-shape and then boil it for 20 minutes. Dragon Boat Racing Another important activity on this festival is holding Dragon Boat race in honor of the great poem Qu Yuan. On the dragon boat racing, a competition would be held between the two teams. The one who reach the final destination first is the winner. It was said that the winning team would bring harvest and happiness to the people of their villages.Generally, a team member stands in front of the boat and beats the drum to keep the delightful spirit of other members. In the competition, team work spirit is essentially needed. Making Fragrant Handicrafts for Children What is more, people will hang a special wormwood named Ai on the front door to drive out evil spirits. Moreover, women will make handicrafts with different ships and fill them with special fragrant ingredients. After finished, they will hang the delicate handicraft to the kids' necks to pray for their healthy and happiness. The Chinese Valentines' Day The Chinese Valentines' Day, also know as Double Seventh Festival, is another traditional festival in China, which is celebrated on July 7th in lunar calendar every year and is particularly popular among young valentines. About the origin of this festival, there comes a legend. It was told that there was a poor cow boy, who felt in love with a weaving girl, 7th daughter of Emperor of Heaven. They lived a happy life and had two babies. When the Emperor of Heaven heard this, she got angry and take the weaving girl back to heaven, while the cowboy held the hands of the weaving girl tightly. Seeing this, the Emperor of Heaven drew the silver river with her hairpin between them and they were separated eventually. The weaving girl was forced to move to the star Vega and the cowboy moved to the star Altair. They are allowed to meet only once a year on the day of 7th day of July lunar month. It was legendarily told that on the Double Seventh Day, people could see the weaving girl and cowboy's dating on the Silver River. If you hide yourself under the fruit trellis, you might overhear the honey conversations between cowboy and weaving girl on this night. On the Chinese Valentine's Day, people in love usually go to the Matchmaker's Temple to pray for their love and possible marriage. People still single will do the same thing to ask for good luck of love in the Matchmaker's temple. On this romantic night, girls usually set tables with fruits displayed to pray for intelligence and sweet love. Tomb-sweeping Day Tomb-sweeping Day, also known as pure brightness day, is one of the most important traditional festivals in China, which usually falls onto 4th, 5th or 6th of April. On the tomb-sweeping day, people will visit their ancestors' graves and mourn for the dead, burning incense, offering food and paper coins. They will also clean the grave area, such as getting rid of weeds growing around the tomb and removing dust on the tomb-grave. After that, some flowers would also be presented. People usually refresh earth, sacrifice and show flows to their ancestor's on this special day. During the days around Qingming, everything is recovered and refreshed, so many outdoor activities like traveling around, flying kites and planting trees are favored by many people.
Knowledge Graph
Examples
1 China Highlights will introduce you to some top Chinese New Year snacks that you might find in every family home when you pay a New Year visit.
2 Married women can go back to their own parents on this day to pay a New Year’s visit (whereas married men are free to choose the timing of any visits).
3 People will pay a New Year visit to one another from the first day, and it is not until the 15th day of the 1st lunar month, namely, the Lantern Festival, that the Spring Festival is ended.