Spring Festival: Tradition, Celebration, Activities & Legend

Spring Festival and Lunar New Year and Chinese New Year; all these names are called synonymously; New Year celebration day of the Lunar calendar.

Spring festival meaning:- As the name suggests, it is a festival celebrated in the spring; The name Spring Festival is derived from the Chinese New Year, a new year celebration festival based on the Chinese lunisolar calendar.

According to the belief that “the festival falls in the spring season, it is straightforward to understand. Hence its name became Spring Festival.” Since when this name has coming, the Spring Festival is the modern name of the lunar new year, and in recent times it is known by the same name, which is in vogue.

By the way, if we look at the history of the Lunar new year, according to the opinion of scholars, the tradition of celebrating it started in East Asia in the sixth century.

Which countries celebrate Spring Festival?

The whole world, known as Lunar New Year or Chinse New Year, is known as the Spring Festival or local names in East Asia countries where it has a big boom and the most significant occasion.

Spring Festival names:- It is different known in different regions, Chinese Chun Jie, Tibetan Solar, Vietnamese tet, Korean Sollal, Mongolian Tsagan Sar, Japanese Rakuten, Indonesians Nyepi, Indians Gudi Padwa Ugadi.

It is the wintertime between the winter solstice and the arrival of spring; During this time, gradual warming begins in the Northern Hemisphere.

This festival falls from 21 January to 20 February every year; during this time, Nature is very charming; the beauty of cherry blossoms, peach blossoms, apricot flowers, and tulips does not make the earth any less than heaven.

Year	Day	Date	Zodiac Animal
2020	Saturday	25 January	Rat
2021	Friday	12 February	Ox
2022	Tuesday	1 February	Tiger
2023	Sunday	22 January	Rabbit
2024	Saturday	10 February	Dragon
2025	Wednesday	29 January	Snake

What is Chun Jie?

In Chinese, it is called Chun Jie, which means Spring Festival; it is the new year celebration in the Chinese lunisolar calendar; the most significant occasion and holiday for every Chinese family.

it is an ancient festival related to agriculture and Farming, which the farmers celebrate before ending the previous farming activities and beginning the next Farming.

It is an ancient festival related to agriculture and Farming, which the farmers celebrate before ending the previous farming activities and beginning the next Farming.

The Chinese lunisolar calendar, which originated about 4000 years ago, was called a Farming Calendar, used to divide the year for agriculture.

Farmers celebrate this festival with their families to celebrate the completion of the farm activity by December-January. Traditional practices like sacrificing animals to the gods and goddesses and Various religious ways are included for good luck; People pray for a promising future in their sacred temples; The new cycle of agricultural work begins only after the Spring Festival.

How did the Spring Festival start?

The Spring Festival started hundreds of years ago, there are many legends related to it, but it is not clear which dynasty started it.

There are many opinions of scholars and historians. It is believed to have originated at the time of the legendary sage-emperors Yao and Shun; Over time, many dynasties added many customs and traditions.

• The Shang Dynasty included worshipping ancestors in the festival.
• The Zhou Dynasty of western China began the custom of introducing agriculture on the occasion of the celebration.
• During the Han Dynasty, the practice of rituals and fireworks became extremely popular.
• The Lantern Festival and Family Gathering took place during the reign of Cao Wei and Jin Dynasties.
• Displaying riddles on lanterns and pole crackers began during the Tang Dynasty.
• Fishers off the coast of Guangzhou since the Southern Song Dynasty began to establish the tradition of eating Yisheng dish on the renal, on the 7th day of the ceremony.

Spring Festival Myths:- Nian was a beast who lived in the sea and the mountain; he used to take the villagers and children and kill them and eat them.
One day the villagers decided to fight the beast; they wore red clothes and firecrackers, which scared the beast and went away. Since then, every year, the Spring Festival is celebrated with red colors and firecrackers to remember this occasion.

Why is the Chinese New Year called Spring Festival?

Around the world, this festival is known as Lunar New Year or Chinse New Year, but in China, where the tradition of celebrating this festival started, it is called Spring Festival or Chun Jie.

The Spring Festival is the modern name of the Lunar New Year that it got in 1914, the main reason being the political cause; before 1913, it was called Lunar New Year.

When the Republic of China was established during Sun Yat-sen‘s reign in 1912, he followed the Gregorian calendar in place of the traditional Chinese lunisolar calendar but with a distinct Chinese specialty. Thus China adopted the dual calendar; Gregorian for official work and the lunar calendar for regular and seasonal festivals.

In China, the tradition of celebrating four types of festivals in the four seasons has been in place since ancient times; in 1913, the new President Yuan Shikai decided that four national holidays would be celebrated from 1914, a holiday for each season, Spring Festival, Samur Festival, Atman. Festival and Winter Festival.

In the current time, the celebration of the Spring Festival is around 15 days and the authorities declare a 1-week holiday to celebrate it. China is a fairly large region inhabited by multi-ethnic people, whose days of celebrating the Spring Festival are different.

Therefore, the government of the newly formed Republic of China labeled this collective 15-day festival as the Spring Festival to honor all these ethnic groups’ celebrations.

How to Celebrate Spring Festival?

The Spring Festival is the most important festival for the people of China and their families; it is the first festival of the year, which preparation already started half a month ago.

To celebrate Lunar New Year, Chinse Offices is a 1-week holiday gift to the people of Marran City. During this time, those outside the house in another country or city come back home; these times are very precious for the family members.

How long is Spring Festival in China?

This festival is usually for 15 days, the preparation of which starts 15 days in advance. The houses, grounds, roads, and surroundings are thoroughly cleaned to welcome the new year.

What does the Spring Festival celebrate?

The brief “celebration begins with a family reunion dinner, people greet each other, children get lucky money at the Red Envelope, play traditional games, the parade, fireworks, enjoy traditional food, music, good luck prayers, and the sixteenth Celebration ends with Lantern Festival.”

Spring Festival Activity

Spring Festival Cultural, Traditionally and historically, it is significant for families. This festival is a heritage that is highly ancient in Chinese tradition.

Career choices, Educational opportunities, and Urbanization have alienated many Chinese families; the festival being the best opportunity serves as a significant opportunity for all to gather. Even today, a reunion for generations of families, and The most important opportunity remains to spend time together.

Rituals that are usually performed on the occasion of the Spring Festival:-

Cleanliness and Decoration:- Preparations for the festival begin half a month before the Spring Festival. Cleaned of dust from the city or the village, all public places, houses, plains, streets, and shops decorated with favorite colors are believed to bring good fortune.

Reunion Dinner:- The reunion dinner, known as Tuan Nian or Wei Lu, On the eve of the new year, all the family members sit together and have dinner and ask the guests, the women of the family make and serve all the dishes, this time is very crucial for the family.

The Rituals of giving lucky money in a red envelope:- In the Spring Festival, it is customary to keep children away from evil powers and to bring good luck to give money in red envelopes, which is called Lucky Money.

They range from 100 to 500, including money, which the children generally use this money to take toys, eat sweets, gamble, bring clothes, or according to their choice.

Send a letter of congratulations:- On this occasion, relatives send greetings and greetings in envelopes made of beautiful decorations, which the Postal Department of China guarantees to deliver before New Year’s Eve.

Nowadays, the trend of sending envelopes has reduced slightly because people now send messages or emails from the phone.

Visiting relatives and friends home:- On this occasion, there has also been a tradition of visiting friends and relatives, people give each other greetings and gifts.

Praying good wishes:- Prayers are performed in Buddhist temples, performing religious rituals and worship on New Year’s Day for a promising future.

Fireworks:- There has been a tradition of bursting firecrackers on the occasion of the festival; there are many fireworks on this occasion; this tradition is related to the mythical Beast Nian.

because of excessive pollution in the present time, it has been banned in many cities.

Public Celebration: There are periodicals and performances of Lion dance and dragon dance to entertain people on the plains and streets. The Yangko dance and stilt walk in northern China and the dragon and lion dance in the southern regions are highly-trained. There are also colorful programs that people come to see and enjoy the schedules of other cities on TV. On this occasion, the president of the nation addresses the citizens of the country.

Lantern Festival:- Lantern Festival is celebrated on the fifteenth day of the Spring Festival. All the places are decorated with beautiful lanterns; lanterns are blown in the sky. This is the last day of the festival.

Spring Festival Zodiac Animals

There is one Zodiac animal in each lunar year; there are 12 Zodiac animals Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig.

There is mythology related to why these 12 animals were included and their order. One of the most important deities of the Chinese religion, the Jade Emperor, organized a swimming competition to symbolize the animals for years, from where these 12 animals were selected.

According to Chinese Astrology, every person gets a zodiac animal from the birth year, Due to which a lot of qualities and demerits come in the person, which plays a vital role in life:- achieving progress, being successful, knowledgeable, wealthy, making a prominent leader, making a big officer, etc., depends on it only.

Zodiac Animals	Years	Personality	Lucky Colors	Lucky Numbers
Rat	1960, 1972, 1984, 1996, 2008, 2020, 2032, 2044, 2056, 2068, 2080	Creative, intelligent, sociable, generous, ambitious, angry, patience	Blue, Gold, Green	2 & 3
Ox	1961, 1973, 1985, 1997, 2009, 2021, 2033, 2045, 2057, 2069, 2081	Strong, sociable, self-confident, fearless, honest, peace-loving, fair-hearted, courageous, dominative, trustworthy, reliable	Green, Yellow, Red	1 & 4
Tiger	1962, 1974, 1986, 1998. 2010, 2022, 2034, 2046, 2058, 2070, 2082	Confident, powerful, aggressive, brave, determined, tough, lonely	Blue, Gray, Orange	1, 3, 4
Rabbit	1963, 1975, 1987, 1999, 2011, 2023, 2035, 2047, 2059, 2071, 2083	Clever, kind, polite, responsible, timid	Red, Pink, Purple, Blue	3, 4, 6
Dragon	1964, 1976, 1988, 2000, 2012, 2024, 2036, 2048, 1960, 1972, 1984	Leadership, knowledgeable, attractive personality, aggressive, arrogant	Gold, Silver, Grayish, White	1, 6, 7
Snake	1965, 1977, 1989, 2001, 2013, 2025, 2037, 2049, 2061, 2073, 2085	Reclusive, great thinker, anxious, responsible, leadership, creative, romantic, enthusiastic, loyal	Black, Red, Yellow	2, 8, 9
Horse	1966, 1978, 1990, 2002, 2014, 2026, 2038, 2050, 2062, 2074, 2086	Leadership, arrogant, energetic, passionate, romantic, sentimental	Yellow, Green	2, 3, 7
Goat	1967, 1979, 1991, 2003, 2015, 2027, 2039, 2051, 2063, 2075, 2087	Calm, gentle, sociable, family lover, selfless	Brown, Red, Purple	2, 7
Monkey	1968, 1980, 1992, 2004, 2016, 2028, 2040, 2052, 2064, 2076, 2088	Smart, intelligent, inventive, gentle, quick, clever, naughty, sociable	Gold, White, Blue	4, 9
Rooster	1969, 1981, 1993, 2005, 2017, 2029, 2041, 2053, 2065, 2077, 2089	Responsive, distinctive, gentle, clever, punctual, sociable	Gold, Brown, Yellow	5, 7, 8
Dog	1970, 1982, 1994, 2006, 2018, 2030, 2042, 2054, 2066, 2078, 2090	Responsive, loyal, family lover, clever, sociable, aggressive, fearless, obedient, hardworking, intelligent	Green, Red, Purple	3, 4, 9
Pig	1971, 1983, 1995, 2007, 2019, 2031, 2043, 2055, 2067, 2079, 2091	Diligent, generous, honest, frank, family lover, sociable, compassionate	Gold, Brown, Grey	2, 5, 8

Click here to 100+ Lunar new year calendar

Spring Festival in Japan

At the current time, major Japanese doesn’t celebrate Spring Festival. Still, they celebrate the new year on 1st January in traditional style with their Traditional Foods, Mochi, Post Card, Bell ringing, Gams, Poetry, Entertainment, etc.

Japan officially celebrates the New Year in January 1873 based on the Gregorian calendar, but it was not until 1872. before this, every occasion was based on a lunisolar calendar.

• In 1868, the Meiji government was formed. Japan underwent significant changes and political revolutions, which resulted in the Gregorian calendar being replaced by the Lunar calendar, and the New Year on January 1 has been done.
• Ambitious Japan wanted to compete with western countries, so it adopted the Gregorian calendar.
• Due to Japan’s inclination toward western countries and the rapid industrialization of the world, the government wanted to end the orthodox tradition and superstitions.
• Every second year in the lunar calendar is a lip year consisting of 13 months, for which the employer had to pay an additional salary of 1 month.

But in some villages and specific places, one can get a glimpse of the Spring Festival today – Yokohama celebrates the Lunar New Year for 15 days, some cities in Okinawa, Southern Islands, Ikebukuro of Tokyo, Kobe, some places in Chinatown, Nagasaki’s annual lantern festival; these are some of the places which celebrate the lunar new year, Yokohama and Chinatown are very famous.

 Spring Festival Foods in Japan – Shushi, Zoni, Sashimi, Mochi.

Traditional games – Fukuwarai, Hanetsuki, Karuta, Sugoroku, Kendama, Otedama, Menko, Daifugo, Takagi, Koma.

Spring Festival Korea

Korean Lunar New Year, also called Seollal, is the Korean version of the Spring festival, celebrated on the same day as Chinese New Year.

• Charye is a recital in Korea in which all the family members gather at the elder son’s house and do different ceremonies and dine together.
• In the Sebae Rituale, the children congratulate their elders for the New Year and seek blessings from them; in return, the adult members give them lucky money.
• Tteokguk and Jeon are Traditional Korean foods, especially eaten on new year’s Day; Tteokguk is made with soup and sliced rice cake, and Jeon is a savory pancake.
• Games – Yutnori and Gostop are traditional games, catching each Other and playing cards with family.

Spring Festival in Vietnam

In Vietnam, this festival is known as Tet, whose full form is “Tet Nguyen Dan,” Which means the morning of the New Year’s first day. The day of celebration is the same as the Chinese New Year, and the festival came from China itself in Vietnam. The way and tradition of obeying it are similar to the Chinese new year.

Some traditional Vietnamese food is usually eaten on the occasion of Tet:- Banh Chung, Thit Kho Trung, Canh Bong, Hat Dua, Mut, Dua Hanh, and Kieu, Mam Ngu Qua, Ga Laos, Gio Cha, Xoi Gac.

Tet Games:- Bau Cua Tom Ca, Co Tuong, Co Ca Ngua, Bai Tay, Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, Sapa, Hue, Moc Chau, Hoi An, Dalat, Phu Quoc Island, Nha Trang.

Happy New Year in Vietnamese – chúc mừng năm mới

Visit China, Korea, Japan, Vietnam, or other countries During Spring Festival

If you are fond of walking or visiting these places during this time to enjoy the Spring Festival, this time may or may not be significant.

It is wintertime when the temperature usually ranges from 0 to 20 degrees, during the festival most of the public places like museums, banks public transport, businesses, etc.

Most hotels, restaurants, taverns, closures, or events are booked, so you have to book a stopover at least 15 days before work.

Extreme crowds are seen in buses and trains as all the people are coming to the family for celebrations.

If you can face the difficulties mentioned above, this time is the best time to appreciate the culture and tradition of these places. People’s enthusiasm, parades, programs, decorations, foods, etc., are outstanding.