China welcomes the Year of the Monkey

Over a billion people in China and millions around the world are celebrating the the Chinese New Year – the most important of Chinese holidays – this week.

Monday marked the first day of the Chinese new year. Millions of Chinese began celebrating the Lunar New Year, which marks…

BEIJING-Chinese are flocking to temples and fairs to pray for good health and fortune on the first day of the Lunar New Year holiday.

A man plays an intricate instrument at a Lunar New Year’s celebration at Huangsi Temple in Shenyang, Liaoning province, China.

The Chinese calendar assigns each new year an animal per a rotating zodiac of 12: rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog and pig.

In 2013, CNN reported that almost 30 million Koreans visited their hometowns during the Lunar New Year. Hosted by the Dalhousie Chinese Students and Scholars Association, the Chinese Spring Festival Gala brought together both native speakers and those learning Mandarin for traditional food, song and dance.

“Christmas is for you what the New Year is to us”, Ye said.

However, the ancient Chinese calendar, on which the Chinese New Year is based, also functioned as a religious, dynastic and social guide. This year is for the Fire Monkey. The first day of the festival begins on the first day of the month – this year it’s February 8 – and usually continues until the full moon 15 days later. However, in as much as there have been changes in the way of celebrating New Year in China, traditional roots are still connected to the whole thing. It is the country’s most important holiday.

Traditional Chinese New Year Decoration.

Other events organised by the NCCC are a Chinese exhibition at The Forum called “Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow” which runs until the end of February, a badminton competition at the end of March and a Chinese arts workshop in The Forum Library on February 20. Another popular ritual is the gifting of hong bao, or red envelopes filled with money, to children and unmarried adults.

Kenny Jones, INTO Marshall student engagement coordinator, greets students at the INTO Chinese New Year celebration.

Some economists have predicted that although Americans are still the largest consumers in the world, Chinese consumers will one day have more spending power than Americans with a growing number of middle class.