Who is celebrating the Chinese Lunar New Year of the Snake and how?

The Chinese New Year oregon the Lunar New Year is simply a large solemnisation successful galore Asian countries and their diasporas astir the globe.

Chinese New Year, besides referred to arsenic the Spring Festival, is astir a two-week-long solemnisation marking the archetypal time of the Chinese calendar year, which lands connected Wednesday this year.

Each Chinese New Year revolves astir a 12-year rhythm and is associated with an carnal successful the Chinese zodiac, which is past paired with immoderate 1 of the 5 elements: metal, wood, water, occurrence and earth.

This caller twelvemonth marks the twelvemonth of the wood snake.

While its origins are successful China, and Chinese communities successful countries specified arsenic Malaysia, the Philippines and Singapore observe nether the aforesaid sanction and with akin traditions, others, specified arsenic successful Vietnam and the Korean Peninsula, person an wholly antithetic sanction for their Lunar New Year festivals.

A pistillate offers prayers astatine the Wong Tai Sin Temple successful Hong Kong, to observe the Chinese New Year, which marked the Year of the Rabbit successful the Chinese zodiac successful 2023 [File: Bertha Wang/AP Photo]

How is the Chinese New Year celebrated?

The days starring up to the caller twelvemonth are spent thoroughly cleaning households to cleanse the abstraction of immoderate atrocious luck from the erstwhile year.

This cleaning is believed to invited bully luck for the twelvemonth ahead. Decorations besides spell up, including lanterns, insubstantial cuttings and caller overgarment – each successful a agleam reddish colour, which invites bully luck arsenic well.

Celebrations commencement with a household reunion meal connected the eve of the caller year.

As the archetypal time of the caller twelvemonth rolls in, homes capable up with household and friends who travel bearing gifts, oranges and reddish envelopes with tiny amounts of money, known arsenic ang pao oregon hongbao, for the small ones.

Greetings and good wishes are exchanged, including the much communal Chinese-language phrases Gong Xi Fa Cai, and Xin Nian Kuai Le, which astir construe to happiness, bid and prosperity for the upcoming days.

Beliefs alteration with immoderate refraining from sweeping their homes oregon cutting their hairsbreadth and nails successful the archetypal fewer days for fearfulness of losing bully luck that has accrued done the visits of New Year well-wishers, according to Yvonne Goh, a Malaysian of Chinese descent.

Traditional lion dances are a cardinal portion of the celebrations arsenic they invitation bully luck and ward disconnected evil spirits from homes, businesses and workplaces.

Children stitchery astir a lion creation performer successful Malaysia [File: Florence Looi/Al Jazeera]

Traditionally, joined women were expected to walk the archetypal time of the Chinese New Year with their in-laws portion the 2nd time was reserved for daughters to sojourn their parents.

The 3rd time is expected to beryllium quieter and resting is prioritised, portion the 4th and 5th days are dedicated to the God of Wealth. The sixth time of celebrations is said to spot radical get escaped of aged oregon unwanted belongings and resume work.

On the seventh day, China’s parent goddess Nuwa is believed to person created humans.

Koreans observe ‘Seollal’, Vietnamese people ‘Tet’

The Korean New Year (Seollal) and the Vietnamese New Year (Tet) are besides celebrated, successful their ain unsocial ways.

The Korean New Year is celebrated implicit a play of 3 days, wherever celebrations are traditionally centred astir household gatherings, Korean accepted nutrient and rituals. For South and North Koreans alike, this volition beryllium the twelvemonth of the greenish snake, believed to bring transformation, maturation and development.

Some of the much important aspects of the Korean festivities see the sebae, a heavy bow of respect performed by younger generations to their elders arsenic a mode of wishing them a blessed caller year.

Typically the sebae is performed portion wearing accepted covering called the hanbok. In return, elders contiguous younger radical with tokens of currency successful envelopes called sebaetdon.

South Koreans show ‘charye’, a accepted ritual serving of food, drinks and different offerings to household ancestors [File: Kim Jae-Hwan/AFP]

Worshipping ancestors, known arsenic charye, is besides an important portion of the caller year. Food is laid retired connected a array arsenic offerings to the ancestors, and heavy bows are performed arsenic a motion of respect.

A atom barroom crockery known arsenic tteokguk is besides served alongside different dishes specified arsenic Korean dumplings. However, the tteokguk takes a peculiar spot connected the eating array arsenic it is served erstwhile each twelvemonth owed to beliefs that eating it would marque a idiosyncratic 1 twelvemonth older.

The Vietnamese New Year solemnisation of Tet, abbreviated for Tet Nguyen Dan which means “festival of the archetypal day”, is celebrated implicit 3 days arsenic opposed to the accepted 15 of the Chinese New Year.

Tet is 1 of the astir important holidays successful Vietnam, wherever offices and businesses adjacent down for 7 to 9 days astir the holiday.

The Vietnamese besides prioritise spending clip with family, paying respect to ancestors, praying to Gods arsenic good arsenic resting earlier the commencement of a caller year.

Before Tet, Vietnamese radical observe Ong Cong, the time of the Kitchen God, a deity believed to govern the family’s affairs. On this day, household altars to ancestors are cleaned, caller offerings are enactment out, and incense is burned.

A Vietnamese husbandman waits for customers up of the Vietnamese Tet festival successful a tract of peach blossom flowers successful Hanoi, Vietnam, successful 2020 [File: Kham/Reuters]

Wrapping of the Chung cake, besides called the Tet cake, cleaning and decorating homes with kumquats, peach blossoms and apricot blossoms are besides an integral portion of preparations.

And the time earlier Tet, families hole 5 effect trays which are laid retired astatine the altar for ancestors, portion visits to the graves of ancestors are made with offerings.

Typically the archetypal time of solemnisation is reserved for the paternal broadside of the household portion the 2nd time is for the maternal side.

Vietnamese civilization besides places teachers successful precocious regard, with the 3rd time of the caller twelvemonth dedicated to honouring teachers.

Tibet’s ‘Losar’ and Mongolia’s ‘Tsagaan Sar’

In Tibet and parts of India with important Tibetan Buddhist communities, Losar, which translates to the caller twelvemonth connected the Tibetan lunisolar calendar, is celebrated astir a akin timeframe arsenic the Chinese New Year.

However, the dates are somewhat different, with this year’s Losar acceptable to beryllium marked connected February 28 and extending implicit a play of 15 days.

Losar is often observed done accepted and spiritual rituals performed successful monasteries and temples, taste events and household bonding implicit shared meals and gifts.

Mongolia volition observe its caller year, known arsenic Tsagaan Sar connected March 1, based connected the Mongolian lunisolar calendar.

However, preparations statesman successful advance, which includes location cleaning and preparing food. Family, neighbours and friends sojourn each other, offerings are dedicated to deities and the existent caller year’s time is started by walking successful a circumstantial absorption based connected zodiac prescriptions.