Celebrating Oriental New Year With Ancient Traditions

By John Chan

Get facts on the different ancient traditions that the Chinese bring back to life during New Year celebrations.

The ancient custom and traditions are an integral part of China and as such they take a lot of pride in them. The whole of China together desire to maintain these activities related to their traditions and as such celebrate them from time to time with aim of carrying them forward.

During Chinese New Year you will see most of the Chinese traditions being celebrated in a row. In the beginning of the year most of the celebrations and activities that take place has to do with their age old customs. They practice many traditional activities to give a warm welcome to the year which will start. The activities will also show to the world the deep belief Chinese people have on these customs and thus celebrate then with great zeal to usher in the New Year.

The celebrations are carried on in large scale during the New Year in China for another reason. The mass media is very efficient in reporting all the happenings of this time to the whole world. The western people find these traditions strange with a magical air about them. Their interest heightened they come to China in large number to witness these traditions thus giving a great push to the China's tourism industry.

The New Year celebrations once they commence carry on for next fifteen days. In fact the celebrations start one two days previous to the New Year. If you are eager to do business in China this is a good time as people love to spend a lot as they are so happy.

The house cleaning ritual is part and parcel of New Year tradition. Chinese homes take a new look and everything becomes shining and clean. All this is meant to drive away the misfortune of the previous year and make the house pure for New Year.

The practice of painting the doors and windows in bright red has a deeper meaning which has to do with the Chinese New Year. They firmly believe that the red color will save them from coming to harm and keep all sort of evil spirit away.

If you visit China during the New Year you will find a good number of decorations in all houses. There are couplets as well as paper cuttings which are the symbols of contentment and wealth and so on. There are different wall papers, paintings and scrolls which people put up to beautify their homes.

The New Years Eve holds a special meaning in Chinese culture. This day all the family members come together in one place for supper. A special dish is made for this meal which is known as jiaozi which has dumpling in the boiling water.

Playing games and watching televisions are few activities that the Chinese indulge in on the New Years Eve. They watch special programs all night long on the television to remain awake. They also keep the lights on the whole night as they believe that doing so their parents will receive long and healthy life.

The New Year day is very special for the Chinese as it is starting point of two week long celebrations. They greet each other, give presents, and participate in Kung fu, lantern parade, concerts and several other things for next two weeks. To round off the celebrations on the first full moon night on the fifteenth day the Chinese have a huge firework display along with dragon dance. - 29956

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