Chinese New Year 2012 begins on the 23^rd January, and will see Chinese communities across the globe see in the Year of the Dragon with a 15 day celebration hoping to bring peace, reconciliation and happiness for all people in the coming year.

The timing and length of the celebration is a Chinese tradition, with months being reckoned by the lunar calendar. Each month begins on the darkest day, which is when the New Year festivities traditionally start, and they will continue until the fifteenth day when the moon is brightest. The Chinese also believe that the first King of China was the Yellow King, who became King in 2697 BC, meaning that the coming celebration will mark the 4709^th Chinese year.

It is traditional that each year be dedicated to a particular animal, with twelve animals (Dragon, Horse, Monkey, Rat, Boar, Rabbit, Dog, Rooster, Ox, Tiger, Snake, and Ram) making up the cycle. Legend has it that in ancient times, Buddha asked all the animals to meet him on Chinese New Year, and these were the twelve that came! He announced that the people born in each animal’s year would have some of that animal’s personality.

Last year was the Year of the Rabbit, and was characterised by calm and tranquillity. The Dragon, though, brings excitement and intensity! The people born under the Dragon are believed to be passionate, brave and self-assured. It is considered an excellent year to be born, as Dragons are also thought to be smart, enterprising and enthusiastic, as well as being the most auspicious animal as per the Chinese zodiac.

The celebrations for this year’s festival are expected to include the usual variety of contemporary and traditional Chinese cultural activities, including dancing, Chinese opera, arts and crafts, lion dances and dragon parades. Another New Year tradition is for people to wear red clothes, decorate with poems on red paper, and give children "lucky money" in red envelopes. Red symbolizes fire, which according to legend can drive away bad luck!

However, the highlight of the celebration often comes on the 15^th day, during which the lantern festival takes place! Families will walk the streets carrying lighted lanterns, whilst candles are lit outside houses as a way to guide wayward spirits home. The most famous images from this festival often involve the ‘Dragon dance’. This is a tradition during which young men dance beneath a Dragon, sometimes a hundred feet long and made from silk, paper and bamboo, as they guide it through the streets!

How will you celebrate the coming ‘Year of the Dragon’?

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Categories: Festivals (Articles)

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