Chinese New Year 2020

By Jamie Wu

Coming up on the 25th of January is Chinese New Year, one of the biggest holidays in the Asian country. Enormous, elaborate celebrations are held that day to celebrate the lunar new year. This year, the holiday honors the year of the rat, with celebrations lasting ten days. Here is a list of common traditions that remain the more prevalent of the holiday. 

Food

The Chinese take lots of pride in their cuisine. On Chinese New Year, all family members gather together for one big feast. Both the night before and the day of are spent preparing the numerous dishes for dinner. Right before we begin eating, we wish each other luck in the upcoming year. The type of dishes usually depends on the family, but we can usually expect our favorite foods to be present at the dinner table. The morning of New Year, families eat glutinous rice balls comprised of sweet filling. 

Gifts

Red envelopes are a very popular gift giving tradition to the Chinese. Different types of envelopes wishes different things among the recipient. Some may bring growth, success, health, fortune, and others. These envelopes are filled with money meant to give you a beneficial boost in the beginning of the year. Usually, the closer or older the relative, the more money you will receive. 

Decorations

Like Christmas in the United States, the weeks leading up to Chinese New Year involve much decorating. Houses are dressed in red and gold decorations, lanterns, and signs that symbolize prosperity while streets stand out with colorful flags. Different decorations are meant to bring different things to your home. Some ornaments are believed to guard your home, attract good spirits, and luck. 

Celebrations

One of the most well known celebrations that occur annually is the lantern festival. Everyone of all ages participate in this festival. During the night, citizens go out and enjoy the evening. Adults socialize, while the children run around with each other. Then, they gather in their yards to make offerings to the gods. The lantern, usually decorated with wishes, is then lit and released into the sky with the hopes of it reaching to the heavens for the gods to see. 

Things to Avoid

A few years ago, I knocked over a glass decoration on Chinese New Years Eve. Little did I know, breaking glassware is the equivalent to breaking any links you have with luck. 

At all costs, make sure your house is clean. Every year, my mother goes into a frantic cleaning mode right before Chinese New Year. She says that cleaning the house will cleanse it of any bad spirits from the year before. Having a clean house going into the new year symbolizes a fresh start.