How to say Happy New Year in Chinese and what does gong hei fat choy mean?

Chinese New Year is celebrated all over the world, with historic traditions that celebrate the special event.

Here’s all you need to know about the celebrations.

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Chinese New Year is celebrated between late January and early February of each year What is Chinese New Year?

The Chinese New Year – also known as the Spring Festival or Lunar New Year – lasts for 16 days, starting from Chinese New Year’s Eve to the Lantern Festival.

Each day of the festival has a name, including days for prayer, for visiting relatives, setting off firecrackers, and preparing for the Lantern Festival.

In China, you’ll hear the New Year being called chunjie (春节), or the Spring Festival.

The Lunar calendar has 12 Chinese zodiac animal signs and 2023 will be a year of the Rabbit.

The Tiger is the third sign of the Chinese Zodiac, which also features the Ox, Rat, Tiger, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig.

As a public holiday, Chinese people get seven days off work for the celebrations.

How is Chinese New Year celebrated in China?

Parades, performances and spending time with family and friends are in the heart of the Chinese New Year celebrations, with millions around the world coming together to mark the holiday.

There are plenty of traditions followed during the festive period, which lasts for 16 days.

One is that people will share red envelopes with each other with money inside.

These red envelopes are given to everyone you know, including all your colleagues and even your postman.

It has also long been a Chinese tradition to set off firecrackers from the first minute of the New Year – there are literally millions of displays occurring at once.

In Chinese culture, red is seen as the colour of luck and success – red decorations, especially lanterns, are used all over towns and cities to help bring luck into the new year.

Also, expect to see plenty of dragon decorations – it is believed that dragons bring power and wisdom.

There are a number of greetings used during the celebrations. One of these is Hei fat choy, which means “Wishing you prosperity and good fortune.”

The common way to say Chinese New Year in the language is Xīnnián hǎo” (新年好), literally meaning ‘New Year Goodness’ or ‘Good New Year’.

What food is traditionally eaten?

One of the main traditions of Chinese New Year is for the entire family to have a feast together.

Certain foods are thought to bring luck, wealth, and happiness to the New Year.

Noodle soup is the traditional meal of choice as the noodles are believed to bring luck.

Communal hotpots are also a popular option for a feast as they are thought to represent the reunion of family members around the table.

Here are some of the most popular dishes eaten during the Chinese New Year:

What superstitions do Chinese people subscribe to over the New Year?

There are some bizarre superstitions that are widely followed during Chinese New Year.

One is that you should not take any medicine on the first day of the year, as you may stay ill for the whole year.

Another is that you should not take out the rubbish, as this symbolises you dumping out good fortune from the house.

You should also not eat porridge for breakfast as it is seen as something that poor people eat, and is a bad omen.

You should not wash on the first or second day as it is seen as washing away good luck.

The use of knives or scissors on the first day is believed to lead to inauspicious things.

The crying of a child is supposed to bring bad luck to the family.

Don’t give certain gifts, like clocks, scissors, and pears, as they have a bad meaning in Chinese culture.