Lunar New Year 2022: Know The Date, History, Significance Of The Chinese New Year

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With the rising of the second moon after the winter solstice, Chinese New Year begins. This popular festival is celebrated across the globe and this year it will be observed on 1 February. It is celebrated with huge pomp and the festival lasts for about 2 weeks. People from Chinese communities also celebrate this as Lunar New Year and Spring Festival.

Lunar New Year 2022: Date

Every year Lunar New Year falls on a different date depending on the cycles of the moon and this year it will be celebrated on 1 February but the main days of celebration also include new year's eve which in this case is 31 January.

As per the Gregorian Calendar, it usually falls between January 20 to February 21 each year and every year is associated with one of the 12 zodiac animals - Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig. The year 2022 is the year of the Tiger.

Lunar New Year 2022: History And Significance

Celebrations related to the Chinese New Year can be dated back to the 14th Century BC. Also, there are several stories and legends associated with this festival. Legend has it that in ancient times, there was a monster named Nian who used to spread terror and attack people. But, he was known to be terrified of the colour red, the sight and sound of firecrackers and fireworks. Therefore, people saw this as an advantage over him and used it to scare the monster away. From that day onwards people started celebrating Chinese New Year.

Lunar New Year 2022: Celebrations

Lunar New Year is considered to be an auspicious day and the colour red holds immense significance for people from the Chinese community. The celebration continues for two weeks or 14 days and therefore, this year it will end on 15 February with the lantern festival on the full moon day. On this day, people cleanse their houses in hope that they will get rid of the negative energy and will be blessed by luck and prosperity.

The houses are decorated with numerous bright red coloured banners and items. Children are also given money in red envelopes on this day. Fireworks, dancing dragons and lions are also an integral part of the celebration. Apart from that grand feasts are organised followed by get-together and people also exchange gifts to mark the beginning of new year.

There are several other countries such as South Korea, North Korea, Vietnam, Mongolia,etc. who celebrate this festival with different name and traditions but the enthusiasm remains the same.