All about Chinese New Year 中国新年

A wide variety of beautiful music from many locations plus informational films on the Chinese New Year.

Don't miss it ...

Chinese New Year (CNY), also known as the Spring Festival, is the most important traditional holiday in China, marking the beginning of the lunar new year. It is celebrated by Chinese communities around the world, as well as in other East Asian countries such as Taiwan, Singapore, and Malaysia. Here's an overview of Chinese New Year and its traditions:

Timing and Duration: Lunar Calendar : Chinese New Year follows the lunar calendar, with the date falling between late January and mid-February each year. The exact date varies because it is based on the lunar phases.

Festival Period : The celebrations typically last for 15 days, beginning on the eve of Chinese New Year and ending with the Lantern Festival on the 15th day of the lunar calendar.

Traditions and Customs: Family Reunions : Chinese New Year is a time for families to come together and celebrate. Many people travel long distances to reunite with their relatives, leading to the largest annual human migration in the world, known as Chunyun.

Cleaning and Decoration : In the days leading up to Chinese New Year, families clean their homes to sweep away bad luck and make way for good fortune. They also decorate their homes with red lanterns, couplets (duilian), and paper cutouts featuring auspicious symbols.

Chinese New Year's Eve Dinner : The New Year's Eve dinner, known as 'reunion dinner' (??? tu�nni�nf�n), is a lavish feast shared with family members. Traditional dishes include fish (symbolizing prosperity), dumplings (symbolizing wealth), and various other symbolic foods.

Red Envelopes (Hongbao) : Red envelopes containing money are given as gifts during Chinese New Year, especially to children and unmarried individuals. The red color symbolizes good luck and wards off evil spirits.

Fireworks and Firecrackers : Fireworks and firecrackers are set off at midnight on New Year's Eve and throughout the festival period to scare away evil spirits and bring good luck.

Lion and Dragon Dances : Colorful lion and dragon dances are performed in streets, parks, and public squares to bring prosperity and good fortune to communities.

Zodiac Animals: Each Year is Associated with an Animal : Chinese New Year is symbolized by one of the 12 animals in the Chinese zodiac cycle. Each animal is believed to influence the personality traits and destiny of individuals born in that year.

Travel and Celebrations: Spring Festival Gala : The Spring Festival Gala, broadcasted on Chinese television on New Year's Eve, features a variety of performances, skits, and musical acts. It is one of the most-watched television programs in the world.

Temple Fairs : Traditional temple fairs are held throughout China during Chinese New Year, offering food stalls, performances, games, and cultural activities for visitors to enjoy.

Chinese New Year is a time of joy, reunion, and renewal, filled with rich traditions and customs that have been passed down through generations. It is a celebration of family, community, and the arrival of spring, marking a fresh beginning and the promise of prosperity in the year ahead.

Related Videos

 

Featured Videos

Chinese cabbage
With ErMi ChuiYan ... Bonus film - kiwi wine ...
ShiChaHai 什刹海 scenes, BeiJing
The three lakes here - XiHai, HouHai and QianHai - were where boats from HangZhou would dock after travelling the Grand Canal. There are still some hutongs in this area, just north of BeiHai Park, which has become a lively destination, especially in the evenings around the lakes.
100 useful conversational phrases for Chinese language learners
Bonus film - two hours of pronunciation practice ...
A trip to TongLi 同理, SuZhou
A water town in north-east JiangSu province, not far from Shanghai. SuZhou Old Town is famous for its gardens as well as canals. The classical gardens are on the UNESCO World Heritage Site list.
Modern ChengDu, SiChuan province
With Walk East ...
Wild Great Wall : JianKou 箭扣 to MuTianYu 慕田峪
An hour or so north of Beijing.
This is GuiZhou 贵州 province
GuìZhōu is a mountainous province in south China known for its ancient rural villages and diverse ethnic minority groups, including the Miao, Bai and Dong. ZhaoXing village and YinTan village * JiangBang rice terraces * GaoHua village * XiaoWeng village * BiaSha village * ZhanLi village * LangDe village * JiDao Miao village * ShiQiao village * PaiMuo village *
Voice of China music feast
A new collection of songs / auditions from the wonderful Voice of China. With 2017 (series 4) judges Wang Feng, Na Ying, Harlem Yu and Jay Chou; plus a few songs from series 2 and 3 ... 00:01 The Voice of China 4 Trailer (Wang Feng, Na Ying, Harlem Yu & Jay Chou) 01:38 Chen Bing (陈冰) - "盛夏光年" (Eternal Summer) [S03] 04:45 Bek (别日克) - "Volare" [S04] 08:08 Zhou Shen (周深) - "欢颜" (Your Smiling Face) [S03] 11:34 Zhang Dandan (张丹丹) - "爱是一颗幸福的子弹" (Love Is A Happy Bullet) [S03] 15:00 Lin Yan (林燕) - "别来纠缠我" (Don't Pester Me) [S04] 18:39 Zhang Xin (张新) - "Fallin'" [S02] 21:14 Zhu Ke (朱克) - "离不开你" (Can't Leave You) [S02] 24:08 Saya Chang (张惠春) - "怎么说我不爱你" (How Can You Say I Don't Love You) [S04] 27:31 Li Zhixian (李致贤) & Chyi Chin (齐秦) - "火柴天堂" (Matchstick Heaven) [S03] 29:35 Bei Bei (贝贝) - "花火" (Fireworks) [S04] *** BeijingBuzzz Top Choice 33:16 Will Jay (刘伟男) - "Lemon Tree" [S04] 37:03 Rocky Chan (陈乐基) - "月半小夜曲" (Half Moon Serenade) [S03] 40:35 Jóhannes Koo (古振邦) - "Say Something" [S04] 44:27 Abigail Garza (李安安) - "I Surrender" [S04] 48:39 Lotus Zhang (张姝) - "一起摇摆" (Let's Rock) [S04] 52:26 Zhao Han (赵晗) - "煎熬" (Torment) [S02] 55:52 Cui Tianqi (崔天琪) - "Mad World" [S02] 58:59 Li Wenhui (李文慧) - "Yellow" [S04] 1:03:04 Tan Xuanyuan (谭轩辕) - "Sill Loving You" [S04] 1:06:24 Zhang Jingyi (张婧懿) - "玫瑰" (Rose) [S03] 1:09:47 Yao Beina (姚贝娜) - "也许明天" (Maybe Tomorrow) [S02], July 2013 ### 1:13:11 Taskyn (塔斯肯) - "Dudarai" (Дударай) [S02] ### Yao Beina (aka Bella Yao), 姚贝娜, 26 September 1981 – 16 January 2015 (aged 33; breast cancer). Among much more, she sang in the CCTV Spring Festival Gala twice, and the pop version of Let It Go in the Disney film Frozen for the Mandarin Chinese dub when the film was released in China. Read more ... It's been a while, but here is over 2 hours of great music.
The LeShan Giant Buddha 乐山大佛
In SiChuan province. The Giant Buddha, which is around 70 meters in height, was carved from the cliff face during the Tang dynasty (618 - 907). It took 90 years to complete. At 3,100 meters (10,170 feet), the nearby Mount EMei is the highest of the four sacred Buddhist mountains in China and a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Tag search ?