Feasts, fireworks, and firecrackers are just some of the delights in
store for you this Chinese New Year, the time of year when the whole
country drops tools to join together in celebration.
Whether you are new to China, or an old hand, this festive season has
something for everyone, and joining in with the celebrations will take
you one step closer to understanding the country’s people, and its
culture. Plenty of events will be happening over the coming weeks, both
within the school and out on the streets, so why not get involved?
Here’s a guide to understanding and enjoying the Chinese New Year.
Background
Because it follows the lunar calendar, Chinese New Year falls on different dates each year, between January 21 and February 20 in the Gregorian calendar. The literal translation of the Chinese name, 春节 (chun jie), is “spring festival,” which was used to replace another term, 元旦 (yuan dan), which means the first day of the new year. When China became a republic in 1911, the Gregorian calendar was adopted to replace the lunar calendar, which had been used for thousands of years. Since then, the term “spring festival” was used to refer to the Chinese New Year in order to distinguish from the new year of the Gregorian calendar, which has been called 元旦 (yuan dan).
The Spring Festival begins on the first day of the first month in the traditional Chinese calendar and ends with Lantern Festival, which is on the 15th day. The origin of Chinese New Year is centuries old and gains significance because of several myths and traditions, adding a little intrigue to an already joyous time of year.
Family reunion dinner
Chinese families will gather for a reunion dinner 团圆饭 (tuan yuan fan) on New Year’s Eve 除夕 (chu xi). In northern China, it is customary for Chinese families to make dumplings together after dinner to eat at midnight. Dumplings symbolize wealth because their shape resembles ancient Chinese gold ingots, and also because the preparation is similar to “packaging luck.” In the South, glutinous new year cakes, 年糕 (nian gao), are devoured. The name literally means “new year cake,” although it has a homophonous meaning of “increasingly prosperous year in and year out.”
After dinner, some families go to temples to pray for a prosperous new year by lighting the first incense of the year; however in modern practice many households hold parties and even countdowns to the new year. In mainland China, the China Central Television (CCTV) New Year’s Gala is broadcast, a tradition that started in 1982.
Red envelopes, or 红包 (hong bao), are passed out during the celebrations, given by married couples to unmarried juniors. The envelopes contain money of even numbers, usually varying from a couple hundred RMB to several thousand. Red envelopes are also known as 压岁钱 (ya sui qian), which literally means “the money used to suppress or put down the evil spirit.” A married person would not turn down such a request for red envelopes as it would mean that he or she would be “out of luck” in the new year.
In addition to red envelopes, which are usually given from elder to younger, small gifts are exchanged between friends and relatives. Gifts are usually brought when visiting friends or relatives at their homes. Common gifts include fruit (typically oranges, which have a homophonous meaning of “lucky,” but never pears, which suggest “separation”), confectionaries, and other small gifts.
Greetings
The Chinese New Year is accompanied by enthusiastic greetings, often referred to as 吉祥话 (ji xiang hua), meaning “auspicious words or phrases.” You can use the following jixianghua: 新年快乐 (xin nian kuai le, “Happy New Year”), 恭喜发财 (gong xi fa cai, “Congratulations and be prosperous”), 年年有余 (nian nian you yu, a wish for “surpluses and bountiful harvests every year”), and 岁岁平安 (sui sui pin an, “everlasting peace year after year”). New Year couplets, printed in gold letters on bright red paper, are another way of expressing auspicious New Year wishes.
New clothing
People typically wear new clothes from head to toe to symbolize a new, abundant beginning. Clothing featuring red or other bright colors is worn because it was once believed that red could scare away evil spirits and bad fortune.
Chinese Zodiac
2012 is the year of the dragon. Persons born in the year of the dragon are said to be masters of their will, and bringers of good fortune. Uninhibited, fearless, and ambitious, the dragon is a force of nature. And if this is your year, you would be in good company; Joan of Arc, Florence Nightingale, Sigmund Freud, John Lennon, and (of course!) Bruce Lee were all dragons.
But beware, according to tradition a red item of clothing should be worn at all times, and all year round to drive away misfortune. Contrary to common assumption, if it is your year, bad luck is said to follow you.
Firecrackers
Firecrackers were once used in ancient China to drive away evil spirits, but they also signify a joyful time of year. The burning of firecrackers has long been an integral aspect of Chinese New Year celebrations. However, as with celebrations around the world, authorities have issued warnings or bans against firecrackers, although if you take a stroll through the city you will find the streets filled with explosions and joy.
But please be careful, especially with children, as they are dangerous and unpredictable.
Decorations
Decorations generally convey New Year greetings. Calligraphy posters show Chinese characters and idioms incorporating elements that are symbolic or convey deeper meaning. Common examples include 春 (chun, “spring”) and 福 (fu, “blessings and happiness”) which are displayed on the doors of homes. These are sometimes seen hanging upside down, since the Chinese word 倒 (dao, “upside down”) is homophonous with 到 (dao, “arrive”) symbolizing the arrival of spring, luck, happiness, and prosperity.
In addition, other decorations, including Chinese knots, lanterns, paper cuttings, paintings, and couplets can be seen. Red is the predominant color used in New Year decorations, as it is the emblem of joy, but also reflects the color of blood, so symbolizing energy and life.
Celebrations at SAS
Red couplets and red lanterns will be displayed across the campuses to light up the Chinese New Year atmosphere at Shanghai American School. All Chinese classes will be learning about and investigating these cultural practices and their meaning in modern Chinese society. There will be a whole school assembly January 19, 10:00-11:00 a.m., in the high school gym on the Pudong campus. In Puxi, there will be three assemblies on January 20 held in the PAC: 8:10-9:10 a.m. for high school, 9:50-10:50 a.m. for elementary school, and 1:55-2:55 p.m. for middle school. The same program will be performed by K-12 students and staff. More details to follow in the coming days.
Background
Because it follows the lunar calendar, Chinese New Year falls on different dates each year, between January 21 and February 20 in the Gregorian calendar. The literal translation of the Chinese name, 春节 (chun jie), is “spring festival,” which was used to replace another term, 元旦 (yuan dan), which means the first day of the new year. When China became a republic in 1911, the Gregorian calendar was adopted to replace the lunar calendar, which had been used for thousands of years. Since then, the term “spring festival” was used to refer to the Chinese New Year in order to distinguish from the new year of the Gregorian calendar, which has been called 元旦 (yuan dan).
The Spring Festival begins on the first day of the first month in the traditional Chinese calendar and ends with Lantern Festival, which is on the 15th day. The origin of Chinese New Year is centuries old and gains significance because of several myths and traditions, adding a little intrigue to an already joyous time of year.
Family reunion dinner
Chinese families will gather for a reunion dinner 团圆饭 (tuan yuan fan) on New Year’s Eve 除夕 (chu xi). In northern China, it is customary for Chinese families to make dumplings together after dinner to eat at midnight. Dumplings symbolize wealth because their shape resembles ancient Chinese gold ingots, and also because the preparation is similar to “packaging luck.” In the South, glutinous new year cakes, 年糕 (nian gao), are devoured. The name literally means “new year cake,” although it has a homophonous meaning of “increasingly prosperous year in and year out.”
After dinner, some families go to temples to pray for a prosperous new year by lighting the first incense of the year; however in modern practice many households hold parties and even countdowns to the new year. In mainland China, the China Central Television (CCTV) New Year’s Gala is broadcast, a tradition that started in 1982.
Red envelopes, or 红包 (hong bao), are passed out during the celebrations, given by married couples to unmarried juniors. The envelopes contain money of even numbers, usually varying from a couple hundred RMB to several thousand. Red envelopes are also known as 压岁钱 (ya sui qian), which literally means “the money used to suppress or put down the evil spirit.” A married person would not turn down such a request for red envelopes as it would mean that he or she would be “out of luck” in the new year.
In addition to red envelopes, which are usually given from elder to younger, small gifts are exchanged between friends and relatives. Gifts are usually brought when visiting friends or relatives at their homes. Common gifts include fruit (typically oranges, which have a homophonous meaning of “lucky,” but never pears, which suggest “separation”), confectionaries, and other small gifts.
Greetings
The Chinese New Year is accompanied by enthusiastic greetings, often referred to as 吉祥话 (ji xiang hua), meaning “auspicious words or phrases.” You can use the following jixianghua: 新年快乐 (xin nian kuai le, “Happy New Year”), 恭喜发财 (gong xi fa cai, “Congratulations and be prosperous”), 年年有余 (nian nian you yu, a wish for “surpluses and bountiful harvests every year”), and 岁岁平安 (sui sui pin an, “everlasting peace year after year”). New Year couplets, printed in gold letters on bright red paper, are another way of expressing auspicious New Year wishes.
New clothing
People typically wear new clothes from head to toe to symbolize a new, abundant beginning. Clothing featuring red or other bright colors is worn because it was once believed that red could scare away evil spirits and bad fortune.
Chinese Zodiac
2012 is the year of the dragon. Persons born in the year of the dragon are said to be masters of their will, and bringers of good fortune. Uninhibited, fearless, and ambitious, the dragon is a force of nature. And if this is your year, you would be in good company; Joan of Arc, Florence Nightingale, Sigmund Freud, John Lennon, and (of course!) Bruce Lee were all dragons.
But beware, according to tradition a red item of clothing should be worn at all times, and all year round to drive away misfortune. Contrary to common assumption, if it is your year, bad luck is said to follow you.
Firecrackers
Firecrackers were once used in ancient China to drive away evil spirits, but they also signify a joyful time of year. The burning of firecrackers has long been an integral aspect of Chinese New Year celebrations. However, as with celebrations around the world, authorities have issued warnings or bans against firecrackers, although if you take a stroll through the city you will find the streets filled with explosions and joy.
But please be careful, especially with children, as they are dangerous and unpredictable.
Decorations
Decorations generally convey New Year greetings. Calligraphy posters show Chinese characters and idioms incorporating elements that are symbolic or convey deeper meaning. Common examples include 春 (chun, “spring”) and 福 (fu, “blessings and happiness”) which are displayed on the doors of homes. These are sometimes seen hanging upside down, since the Chinese word 倒 (dao, “upside down”) is homophonous with 到 (dao, “arrive”) symbolizing the arrival of spring, luck, happiness, and prosperity.
In addition, other decorations, including Chinese knots, lanterns, paper cuttings, paintings, and couplets can be seen. Red is the predominant color used in New Year decorations, as it is the emblem of joy, but also reflects the color of blood, so symbolizing energy and life.
Celebrations at SAS
Red couplets and red lanterns will be displayed across the campuses to light up the Chinese New Year atmosphere at Shanghai American School. All Chinese classes will be learning about and investigating these cultural practices and their meaning in modern Chinese society. There will be a whole school assembly January 19, 10:00-11:00 a.m., in the high school gym on the Pudong campus. In Puxi, there will be three assemblies on January 20 held in the PAC: 8:10-9:10 a.m. for high school, 9:50-10:50 a.m. for elementary school, and 1:55-2:55 p.m. for middle school. The same program will be performed by K-12 students and staff. More details to follow in the coming days.
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