Chinese have many traditional customs relating to the Spring Festival. Since the 23rd day of the 12th lunar montha, people start to prepare for the event. Every family will undertake thorough cleaning, do their Spring Festival shopping, create paper-cuts for window decoration, put up New Year picturesb, write Spring Festival coupletsc, make New Year cakesd, and also prepare all kinds of food to bid farewell to the old and usher in the new.
New Year’s Eve is the time for a happy reunion of all family members, when they sit around the table to have a sumptuous New Year’s Eve dinner, talking and laughing, until daybreak, which is called “staying up to see the year out”. When the bell tolls midnight on New Year’s Eve, people eat dumplings. In ancient times, midnight was called zishi (a period of the day from 11 p.m. to 1 a.m.). Dumplings (jiaozi) are eaten because it sounds the same as “change of the year and the day” in Chinese.
From the first day of the lunar year, people pay New Year calls on relatives and friends, which is an important custom for the Spring Festival.
Setting off firecrackers is the favorite activity of children in the Spring Festival. According to legend, this could drive off evil spirits. The continuous sound of firecrackers can be heard everywhere, adding to the atmosphere of rejoicing and festivity.
Many places hold temple fairs. The wonderful dragon lantern dance and the lion dance performances, along with various handicraft articles and local snacks attract thousands of people.
With the development of the times, some changes have taken place in the customs of spending the Spring Festival. For example, to prevent environmental pollution, many cities have banned firecrackers. But this does not have an impact on the happy atmosphere of the festival. On New Year’s Eve, family members get together to have dinner while watching TV programs.
For Chinese at home and abroad, the Spring Festival is always the most important festival.
New Year season lasts for fifteen days. The first week is the most important and most often celebrated with visits to friends and family as well as greetings of good luck. The celebrations end on the important and colourful Lantern Festival on the evening of the 15th day of the month. However, Chinese believe that on the third day (年初三) of the Chinese New Year it is not appropriate to visit family and friends, and call the day “chec hao” (赤口), meaning “easy to get into arguments”.
The date of the Chinese New Year is determined by the Chinese calendar, a lunisolar calendar. The same calendar is used in countries that have adopted the Confucian and Buddhism tradition and in many cultures influenced by the Chinese, notably the Koreans, the Japanese, the Tibetan, the Vietnamese and the pagan Bulgars. Chinese New Year starts on the first day of the new year containing a new moon (some sources even include New Year’s Eve) and ends on the Lantern Festival fourteen days later. This occurs around the time of the full moon as each lunation is about 29.53 days in duration. In the Gregorian calendar, the Chinese New Year falls on different dates each year, on a date between January 21 and February 20. In traditional Chinese Culture, Lichun is a solar term marking the start of spring, which usually falls on either February 4 or 5.
Days before the new year
On the days before the New Year celebration, Chinese families give their home a thorough cleaning. It is believed the cleaning sweeps away bad luck and makes their homes ready for good luck to arrive. All brooms and dust pans are put away on New Year’s Eve so that good luck cannot be swept away. Some people give their homes, doors and windowpanes a new coat of red paint. Homes are decorated with paper cutouts of Chinese auspicious phrases and couplets (short phrases) that speak of “happiness,” “wealth,” “longevity.”
Reunion dinner
A reunion dinner is held on New Year’s Eve where members of the family, near and far, get together for celebration. The New Year’s Eve dinner is very large and traditionally includes chicken. Fish (鱼, yú) is included, but not eaten up completely (and the remainder is stored overnight), as the Chinese phrase 年年有余 (nián nián yǒu yú), which means “may there be surpluses every year”, sounds the same as “may there be fish every year”, since “yú” is also the pronunciation for 余 (”leftover” or “surplus”). A type of black hair-like algae, pronounced “fat choy” in Cantonese, is also featured in many dishes since its name sounds similar to “prosperity”. Hakka will serve kiu nyuk (扣肉) and ngiong tiu fu. Because certain things and/or food sound alike to certain Chinese well-wishes, the belief is that having one will lead to the other.
An illustration of what a Chinese Ancient Gold Nugget might look like.Most Northerners serve dumplings as the main dish in this festive season, although most Chinese around the world would do the same because it is believed that dumplings (饺子, jiǎo zi) are wrapped in the semblance of Chinese gold nuggets (illustrated) used in ancient China. This gold nugget is called 金元宝 (jin yuán bǎo). However, mandarin oranges are the most popular and most abundant fruit during Chinese New Year amongst Chinese simply because of, inter alia, how the name of the fruit is phonetically similar to gold — jin ju (金橘子) or kam (金) in Cantonese.
Clothing
Red clothing is worn throughout the Chinese New Year, as red will scare away evil spirits and bad fortune. Also, people typically wear new clothes from head to toe to symbolize starting anew in the new year.
Money Given to Children
On the night of Chuxi, or the night before the first day of new years, parents or grandparents usually put “yā suì qián” (压岁钱) or “end of year money” under children’s pillows. The most common story of the origin of this tradition is below:
There once was a monster called Sui(祟) that would come on the night of Chuxi and touch the forehead of sleeping children. Once touched, normal children turned insane and smart children were then mentally retarded. To avoid this, parents usually stayed up the whole to watch out for Sui (守祟, or 守岁). One couple loved their bright son very much, and decided one year to keep the son awake by having him playing with coins wrapped in red paper. However, both the parents and the boy eventually fell asleep, with the paper wrapped coins fallen beside the boy’s pillow. At night, Sui came in looking for the boy. The parents woke up, but it was too late for them to stop Sui. As Sui got close to the boy, a light flashed from the paper wrapped coins, scarying Sui away.
The next day, the story was known through out the village, and people believed that having coins wrapped in red paper would keep Sui away on Chuxi. Therefore it became a tradition to put money by the pillows of children on the night of Chuxi, and the money is then called Ya Sui Qian 压祟钱, or Sui Suppressing Money. And since Sui(祟) sounds similar to the word 岁 which means year, it is then called 压岁钱, for people believed this money would keep their children safe for the rest of the year.
Blessing
Treasures fill the home
Business flourishes
Peace all year round
Wishing you prosperity
Harmony brings wealth
May all your wishes come true
Everything goes well
The country flourishes and people live in peace
Money and treasures will be plentiful
Wishing you every success Promoting to a higher position
Safe trip wherever you go
Wish you happiness and prosperity in the coming year!
Wish you success in your career and happiness of your family!
Dos and Donts of Chinese New Year
Do’s:
Wish everyone you meet a happy New Year by saying “gong xi fa cai”, which translates to: “Have a happy and prosperous New Year!”
Wear articles of red clothing because red symbolizes luck.
Eat vegetarian food because it’s not good to see blood.
Buy new trousers because the Chinese word for trousers is “fu”, (Chinese homonym for wealth) ；
Children should stay up as late as possible on New Year’s Eve for it is believed that the later they stay up, the longer their parents will live.
Visit family (especially those older than yourself) and friends to pass on your wishes on good fortune for the New Year. (plus kids and single people will receive lai-see lucky red packets full of money.
Give two lai see to each child. Because happiness comes in two’s, do not just give one. This is your way of passing good luck to the next generation. Business owners also give lai see to employees and associates.
Don’ts:
Don’t wear white or black clothing, since they are the traditional colours of mourning.
Don’t buy new shoes for the first month of the New Year, because the sound of shoe in Chinese is “hai”. “Hai” is similar to the sound of sighing, which Chinese believe is not a good way to start the year.
Don’t wash your hair for the first three days of the New Year, because the Chinese word for hair is a homonym for the Chinese word for wealth. Therefore, Chinese believe it isn’t a good thing to ‘wash away your wealth’ right at the start of the New Year.
Floors may not be swept and garbage may not be disposed of on the first day of the New Year for fear of casting riches out the door.
Don’t swear or quarrel.
Don’t break any dishes, otherwise you may incur more misfortune for the New Year. In the event of breaking a dish, quickly say ” Peace for all time”, and the bad luck will be warded away.
Don’t greet people who are in mourning.
Don’t drop your chopsticks.
Don’t say the number ‘four’ (Chinese homonym for death) or mention death.
Don’t borrow or lend money.
WELCOME TO CHINA AND SPEND THE SPRING RESTIVAL WITH YOUR FAMILY AND KINDLY FRIENDLY CHINESE PEOPLE! 
The first day of the first lunar month is the New Year in the Chinese lunar calendar. Among the traditional Chinese festivals, this is the most important and the most bustling. Since it occurs at the end of winter and the beginning of spring, people also call it the Spring Festival.
