Chinese New Year Dragon. New Year's Dragon Dance in China
How and when to celebrate Chinese New Year 2012 - the Year of the Dragon?
After the New Year, everyone starts asking each other when Chinese is this year. New Year.
We really enjoyed celebrating it.
But its date changes every year. And time...
So how and when to celebrate Chinese New Year 2012 - the Year of the Dragon?
So let's figure out once and for all how and when to celebrate Chinese New Year.
It depends on the moon. More precisely - from the date of the new moon.
Chinese New Year falls on the second new moon after the winter solstice.
This is the period between January 12 and February 19.
This year second New Moon, 1st Lunar day will begin on January 23 at 9:39 (Ukraine).
Moscow time (MSK) - 11:38:43, Universal Time (UTC) 07:38:43
Required attribute chinese year is the color red, and the clothes, lights and firecrackers are red.
Because that's what he's afraid of a terrible fierce monster with horns on its head - Nian
It was in honor of the expulsion of this beast that this festival was established.
And today, on their New Year, the Chinese put on red clothes, light the lights and rattle firecrackers in order to save the year from the monster, so that Nian does not dare to return.
In general, the Chinese New Year is rich in traditions, one of which you will really like.
This
If we follow the Chinese traditions of celebrating the New Year, the whole family needs to get together for festive table for New Year's dinner.
Dinner should be sumptuous with a variety of dishes.
Dishes made from chicken, fish and “doufu”, bean curd (“tofu”), are required, since in Chinese the names of these dishes are consonant with the words “happiness” and “prosperity”.
Also on New Year's Day, it is customary to eat dumplings (jiaozi) and niangao (slices made from glutinous rice).
The word “jiaozi” is consonant with the words “seeing off the old and welcoming the new.” And the dumplings resemble in their shape traditional Chinese gold and silver ingots, that is, they symbolize the desire for wealth.
"Niangao" symbolizes the improvement of life every year.
Instead of our various gifts, in China they give Ya-sui qian - pocket money in special red envelopes. We know them too. They are in all eastern shops.
So, we can say that now we know exactly when and how to celebrate Chinese New Year.
Chinese New Year. -
Year of the Dragon
On the night of January 22-23, 2012, in China, the New Year comes into its own. 2012 to lunar calendar, bears the name of the Black Water Dragon. So, what is this Chinese New Year holiday?
This holiday resembles a hybrid of our New Year and our Maslenitsa. For Chinese New Year spring holiday- represents the awakening of nature after a long winter. It is believed that on this day it is possible to attract fertility and rice harvest. It is customary to decorate the house with a variety of compositions - rice is laid out in a mound on a large surface, decorated with tangerines, large persimmons, and cypress branches. Chinese coins with holes, decorated with red ribbons, are hung on a branch. This is similar to the "Money Tree", symbolizing prosperity and wealth in the coming year. Many flowers appear in houses, these are daffodils and orchids, as a symbol of a happy married life. And peonies, which are usually placed in the zone of wealth and glory, as a symbol of nobility and wealth.
Today, no one remembers when the Chinese began celebrating the Spring Festival. Scientists believe that this holiday is already more than a thousand years old.
Chinese New Year 2012
- one of the most significant traditional holidays in China. Its other name is “Lunar New Year”, because it is a derivative of the lunisolar calendar. the exact date determined based on lunar phases.
There are several legends associated with the origin of the Spring Festival.
So, this holiday was called “Gonyan”. According to legend, "gonyan" was wild beast, bringing people a lot of troubles and suffering. He had a terrible look, from which leaves fell from the trees and the earth became barren. But it was worth leaving to a terrible beast as nature came to life, flowers bloomed all over the earth. People thought for a long time about how to defeat the ferocious monster. And one day they decided to scare him and started setting off firecrackers. This is how the Chinese learned to create a variety of firecrackers, which they generously launched at the time of the New Year, so that the Spring Festival would come quickly and nature would come to life.
According to another legend, the holiday was associated with another monster - it was the ancient animal Nian, which appears before the New Year and devours people. For several centuries, people waited in horror for the annual appearance of the monster. Until one elder came to an agreement with Nian. He inspired the monster that people are too weak to resist the great beast, and therefore do not deserve his attention. It is not better to choose other animals as the object of hunting.
Nian listened to the elder and no longer attacked people, and began to hunt those animals that attacked peasants and their livestock. Over time, the arrival of the New Year ceased to be a time of fear and sorrow for the Chinese. People began to look forward to this time, because now they could rejoice at the arrival of spring and enjoy the holiday.
The wise old man left red lanterns for the villagers to protect their homes in case Nian wanted to hunt people again. These lanterns were hung on windows and doors in peasant houses, because it was believed that Nian was afraid of the color red. And now for the New Year in China there is so much red.
Many traditions have been forgotten, for example, the ritual of sacrifice, but in most villages and towns some of them are still used. Paired inscriptions are pasted on the gates of houses and on the walls, and New Year's paintings. hieroglyphs-wishes, “health”, “ For long years life", "happiness". The windows of the houses are decorated with intricate patterns that are cut out of paper. The holiday turns into traditional mass performances. These are various sports competitions, and of course dances of lions and dragons.
The Spring Festival lasts for several days. The day before, the Chinese are shopping New Year's gifts, point general cleaning at home, painting doors and windows with fresh red paint, preparing a festive table, sewing or buying a new one. The Chinese with their whole family prepare the most popular dish - dumplings, which represent the most good wishes to all families, among which the most important thing is the birth of a son.
There is one more interesting custom– in the Chinese house, an image of the God of the Kitchen hangs all year round. And so, before the New Year, people burn it so that it will take away all the troubles, quarrels, etc. from the family. After all, the God of the kitchen knows everything that happens in the family, even the unspoken thoughts and complaints of all family members. It helps maintain peace and order in the house. And besides, it gives an account in heaven, where it ends up in the form of smoke, for the behavior of the family. And of course, he returns back to the kitchen, immediately after the New Year, because the Household hangs a new image of the God of the kitchen on the wall. Some people use a trick, and before burning the image of the God of the Kitchen on New Year's Day, they smear it with honey, hoping that this will ensure better reviews.
The entire New Year's Eve is spent in the family talking, fireworks begin at midnight, and in the morning the whole family will visit their loved ones and acquaintances with congratulations and wishes for all the best in the New Year. These days there is reconciliation between people.
The joyful atmosphere of the Spring Festival will last for half a month. And another holiday, "Yuanxiao" (Lantern Festival). On this day, the Chinese eat pastries made from sticky flour with sweet filling and candied fruits. It is also customary to admire the light of lanterns lit at night. This is where the New Year celebration ends.
So, to celebrate Chinese New Year, you need a new bright clothes, red lanterns and decorations. You can't do without rice and seafood and of course fireworks. Don't forget the flowers. Well, burn something that you think carries negative energy accumulated over last year. You can't do without fun, Have a good mood and hopes for joy and happiness next year.
23.01.2012 11:54:36,New Year in China differs in many ways from the European holiday we are used to. It is not tied to any specific calendar date, and each time falls on different numbers. Typically, this event occurs in February or late January. For example, in 2012 it fell on January 23, in 2013 on February 10, and in 2014 the Chinese celebrated it on January 31. When is Chinese New Year in 2015? According to eastern calendar, it will come on the night of February 19th.
Traditionally, this holiday is celebrated on the first new moon of spring, which is why it is often called the Spring Festival. For many hundreds of years, for the Chinese it remains the most important event of the year, which always takes place on a grand scale. You will probably be interested to know the history and traditions of this holiday.
The history of the holiday
According to legend, in Ancient China there lived a huge terrible monster - Nian, who all year round was hiding in the depths of the waters. Only on the very eve of the New Year did it come to the surface, devouring people in the surrounding villages and ruining their homes. The peasants were very afraid of this monster, so before his arrival they left their homes and hid high in the mountains. One day, when in the small village of Tao Hua (“Peach Blossoms”) people were preparing for the arrival of Nian, an old beggar with a silver mustache appeared there. He held a bag in one hand and a cane-staff in the other. No one paid attention to the old man, everyone was busy with their own business: some were closing the shutters and doors, others were getting ready to go on the road. Fear and panic reigned in the village. Only one old woman gave the traveler some food and sheltered him in her house. She persuaded the old man to leave the village as soon as possible so as not to meet the monster. However, the beggar told her that he would stay and could easily drive Nanny away. So he did, the old woman had to go alone. When the monster burst into the village, it saw only one house in which the light was burning, and its doors were painted red. Nian got closer, and then the loud crack of firecrackers was heard. Seeing this, the monster ran away in horror. As it turned out, it was afraid of the color red, loud noise and bright flames. The residents who returned the next morning were surprised to find their houses intact, rejoiced at this and began to congratulate each other. This is how the tradition of celebrating Chinese New Year began.
Bright explosions of fireworks
Despite the fact that there are no mythical monsters the inhabitants of the Celestial Empire are no longer threatened; they still celebrate the New Year with bright fireworks and explosions of firecrackers. Now modern pyrotechnic products are used for this, but before the invention of firecrackers and firecrackers, all objects capable of making noise were used. Most often, the role of pyrotechnics was bamboo sticks(baozhu), which, when thrown into the oven, made a loud crash and caused sparks. The noise is intended to drive away evil spirits from the house, looking for a new refuge on New Year's Eve. If the house is quiet, the spirits will happily settle in it and the whole next year will cause minor troubles for the owners.
House cleaning
Chinese New Year needs to be celebrated cleanly, so the Chinese always do a thorough cleaning the day before. Before evening, all brooms, buckets, rags, mops, brushes and other cleaning equipment must be removed from prying eyes. The reason for this is ancient legend, according to which on New Year's Day, each family receives good luck from the gods for the entire next year. Good luck settles in the house in the form of dust, so whoever decides to clean during the holiday risks sweeping away the good luck intended for him and even causing trouble. Cleaning, as a rule, starts from the threshold and ends in the middle of the room.
On New Year's Day - only in red
All residents of the Celestial Empire dress in bright red clothes for the holiday. Red is a special color for the Chinese; it is the color of ceremonial, festive attire. For example, traditional Wedding Dress Chinese women – bright red.
The emergence of this tradition was facilitated by the same legend about a monster who is afraid of everything red like fire. Therefore, at least some element of this color is necessarily present in the festive attire of the people of China.
New Year's table
In the Celestial Empire, it is customary to celebrate the New Year at the festive table with family. Dinner does not begin until all family members are together. And if someone still cannot attend the holiday, they are still given a special place and cutlery is provided.
The festive table is always distinguished by the richness and variety of dishes. Traditionally, dishes made from fish, chicken and tofu are placed on the table.
In Chinese, the names of these dishes are consonant with the words “prosperity” and “happiness”. The taste preferences of residents of the north and south differ. For example, northerners prefer dumplings (jiaozi), and residents of the southern provinces prefer niangao (small balls made from glutinous rice). And this also has its own symbolic meaning: the word “jiaozi” is consonant with the phrase “farewell to the old and welcome to the new,” and “niangao” means annual improvement of life.
Money of happiness
Another interesting tradition of the Chinese New Year is that the dinner ends with the distribution of lucky money. On the eve of the holiday, adults prepare red envelopes and put some money in them. It is believed that they will bring prosperity and good luck to the owner over the next year. It used to be customary to put one hundred copper coins tied together with a red ribbon into an envelope. This symbolized financial well-being and the hope of living a hundred years.
Two tangerines and other gifts
Not only in our country, the tangerine has become the main symbol of the New Year, in China it is also an indispensable attribute of this holiday. A very interesting custom is associated with this citrus fruit. Everyone who comes to visit New Year's Eve, must give the owners two tangerines. And when they were getting ready to return home, they also received a couple of other tangerines from their owners. This custom arose due to the similarity in sound of the phrase “two tangerines” and the word “gold”. It was believed that such a gesture would bring wealth and prosperity for the entire next year.
It is customary to give gifts to married couples; they denote harmony and common interests of husband and wife. A good gift money also counts. But some things are not worth giving. For example, elderly people should not be given watches, and couples expecting a child should not be given toys or children's items. Gifts are given just before leaving, and sometimes they are simply placed in discreet place so that the owners do not immediately notice them.
Dance of Lions and Dragons
Street dancing is a mandatory attribute of the Eastern New Year. The most popular dances in China are the Lion and Dragon dances. It is believed that they drive out evil spirits and bring good luck, prosperity and prosperity to the country. These dances are very energetic and colorful, often accompanied by rhythmic drumming and gong sounds. Both children and adults eagerly await the start of the performance. 
The emergence of the Lion dance is associated with the traditions of the ancient Han people, for whom the lion served as a symbol of happiness and prosperity. To perform the Lion dance, only two dancers are needed, one is responsible for the head of the beast, the other moves the body. The first dancer bears a great responsibility; the lion's facial expressions depend on his movements, and he also sets the rhythm and direction of the entire dance.
In the culture of the Celestial Empire, dragons have always occupied a place of honor. It is not surprising that he is given the most the main role at the festival. The dragon represents courage and strength, dignity and virtue, and is considered a sacred creature.
To perform a dragon dance you need a lot experienced dancers- at least ten people. With their movements, the dancers express admiration for the Dragon, asking him to tame the winds and water the earth with rain so that there will be a good harvest. Inexperienced tourists may confuse these two dances, since the costumes of the Lion and the Dragon are somewhat similar, but the movements of the dancers are always different.
Other signs and superstitions
There are many others folk customs and prejudices, one way or another connected with the celebration of the New Year.
- It is not customary to celebrate this holiday in your bedroom; it is considered a bad sign, which will entail seven years of troubles and misfortunes. Even old and sick people try to celebrate this event at the table with their family.
- The first person you meet and the first word he utters speaks volumes about what the next year will be like. A bird flying into a house, especially a swallow, is very good sign, it portends wealth and prosperity.
- On the first day of the new year, it is not customary to use cutting objects, including scissors and knives. Otherwise, you risk cutting off your luck.
For the Chinese, New Year is the most solemn and joyful event. This is a time of reconciliation and reunion when the whole family gathers for a festive dinner. They communicate, give each other gifts, make family photo. Chinese New Year has rich traditions and customs that have come from time immemorial and are sacredly revered even in our day progressive age. By the way, the symbol of the Chinese New Year 2015 will be a wooden Sheep, or Goat.
January 23 marked the Chinese New Year 2012, the Year of the Dragon. The Dragon, one of the 12 animals of the Chinese zodiac, signifies wealth and strength. In the Chinese astrological cycle, this year is also associated with water, which means 2012 is the Year of the Water Dragon, a symbol of optimism and growth that only happens once every 60 years. People from all over the world enter the year with fireworks, family feasts, temple visits and street festivals. This issue contains photographs from several countries whose inhabitants welcomed the arrival of the Water Dragon.
(Total 34 photos)
1. Thousands of people came to the festival of lights on the eve of the Lunar New Year in Shanghai. (Peter Parks/AFP/Getty Images)
2. An artist plays with fire during a dance performance to celebrate Chinese New Year in Manila's Chinatown in the Philippines. (AP Photo/Bullit Marquez)
3. Dancers perform at a parade to celebrate the Eastern New Year in Solo, Central Java, Indonesia. (AP Photo/)
4. A girl writes the word “Dragon” and the number “2012” in the air with fireworks in Beijing. (Liu Jin/AFP/Getty Images)
5. A woman with incense prays for prosperity on the first day of the Chinese New Year at a Beijing temple. (Reuters/Jason Lee)
6. Actors in folk costumes perform a lion dance at a temple fair to celebrate the New Year in Beijing. (Feng Li/Getty Images)
7. Nicasio Leong Magdaraog completes work on the dragon's head before the Chinese New Year celebrations in Manila. (AP Photo/Pat Roque)
8. A young man drives past Yuyuan Garden with red lanterns in Shanghai. (Reuters/Carlos Barria)
9. Actor in traditional costume participates in an ancient Qing Dynasty ceremony in which emperors prayed for good harvests and prosperity, as part of the opening ceremony of the fair in front of the temple at Ditan Park in Beijing. (Reuters/David Gray)
10. The Empire State Building lit up red and yellow in honor of the Lunar New Year in New York. (Reuters/Shannon Stapleton)
11. Chinese girls watch the dragon mask procession in honor of the first day of the Chinese New Year in Kolkata, India. (AP Photo/Bikas Das)
12. A festival participant reaches for a gift from a supermarket in Manila's Chinatown. (AP Photo/Bullit Marquez)
13. A girl burns incense to welcome the Year of the Dragon at Longhua Temple in Shanghai. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
14. A woman burns incense to pray for prosperity on the first day of the Eastern New Year at a temple in Beijing. (Reuters/Jason Lee)
15. South Korean army soldiers bow in respect to their ancestors during Chinese New Year celebrations at a base in Cheorwon near the demilitarized zone separating the two Koreas. (AP Photo/Yonhap, Kag Un Na-rye)
16. Young Chinese performers wearing dragon hats prepare to perform at a fair near a temple in Beijing. (Feng Li/Getty Images)
17. A man holds bottles of oil during prayer on the first day of the Eastern New Year at the Dharma Thakti Temple in Jakarta. (Reuters/Supri)
18. Local residents walk along the streets against the backdrop of New Year's fireworks in Shanghai. (Reuters/Carlos Barria)
19. Fireworks illuminated the skyline of Beijing during the New Year celebrations. (Reuters/David Gray)
20. A Chinese man watches the New Year's fireworks in Shanghai. (Reuters/Carlos Barria)
21. Divers perform a dragon dance during a New Year event at the Shanghai Aquarium. (Reuters/Carlos Barria)
22. The Chinese of Indonesia release a lantern in honor of the New Year in Medan, North Sumatra. (AP Photo/Binsar Bakkara)
23. Amateur artists perform a fire show in honor of the Chinese New Year in the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk. (Reuters/Ilya Naymushin)
24. A Chinese man hangs a sign with wishes for the new year on the door of a temple in Beijing. (Mark Ralston/AFP/Getty Images)
25. An artist in traditional costume and makeup drinks tea as he and his colleagues prepare for New Year celebrations at the 700-year-old Dongyue Temple in Beijing. It is the largest temple of its kind in northern China for the School of True Unity, built by Taoist monks in the 14th century. (Reuters/David Gray)
26. Residents of Singapore cross the road next to a dragon decoration on New Year's Day. (Reuters/Edgar Su)
27. Kelly Hoan and her son Scott play with sparklers at the Chinatown Temple in Singapore. Thousands of people came to Chinatown to celebrate the Year of the Water Dragon. (Chris McGrath/Getty Images)
28. Decorative red lanterns on trees at a temple fair in Beijing. (Feng Li/Getty Images)
31. Rehearsal for a procession with inflatable dragons next to road sign, meaning the word "spring", in Beijing. (AP Photo/Alexander F. Yuan)
32. A girl lights incense on the first day of the Chinese New Year at a temple in Kuala Lumpur. (Reuters/Bazuki Muhammad)
33. LED-lit dragon at the Hong Kong International Chinese Parade. The parade featured illuminated moving floats accompanied by local and foreign musical groups, entertained local residents and tourists. (aaron tam/AFP/Getty Images)
34. A Chinese woman burns incense to pray for prosperity and prosperity on the first day of the Chinese New Year of the Dragon in Beijing. (Mark Ralston/AFP/Getty Images)
In anticipation New Year, the onset of which Chinese celebrated on Monday, buses, trains, and airports are literally packed with people trying to return home for a holiday that combines Christmas, New Year And Thanksgiving Day... For many Chinese, this holiday is the only chance of the year to see family, so they return to their relatives, literally laden with gifts.
1.In the photo: New Year's performance at the Shanghai Aquarium to celebrate the Year of the Dragon.
2. The importance of this holiday, which the Chinese traditionally celebrate on a grand scale, leads to the fact that all communication routes are literally paralyzed - people rush home to celebrate the New Year with loved ones. According to the Department of Transport, about 3.2 billion trips are taken during this period - all in the six weeks leading up to the holiday, also known as Spring Festival. In the photo: Passengers queue at the railway ticket office in the waiting room at Hankou Station in Wuhan, Hubei province.
3. “There is an absolutely phenomenal amount of travel for the Spring Festival in China. Nowhere in the world are so many people on the road almost simultaneously,” says John Scales, a transport expert in Beijing. In the five days preceding the holiday, the same number of train tickets are sold as in whole year, say, in the USA.
4. Children wave from the window of a train as it leaves the station in Shanghai.
5. Workers install a 126-meter dragon in a park in Taiyuan in northern China's Shanxi province.
6. Angelito Araneta Jr., 24, examines an edible dragon figurine at a restaurant in Manila. The figurine is plated in gold and decorated with 17 pearls and two diamonds that act as eyes. Angelito himself created this figurine to commemorate the coming of the Year of the Water Dragon. The cost of the statue is 600,000 pesos, which is £8,950.
7. Actors yawn during rehearsal festive performance at the temple fair at the Earth Temple in Beijing. The performance is a variation on an ancient ritual during which emperors prayed for a good harvest and prosperity.
8. Flyer distributors dressed in suits chinese deities prosperity and good luck in a shopping center in Beijing.
9. Performance at the West Kowloon Bamboo Theater in Hong Kong. The play is called "The Prime Minister of Six States."
10. Passengers with their luggage wait in line to board a train at Hankou Station in Wuhan, Hubei province.
11. A couple kisses while waiting for a train at a train station in Beijing.
12. Passengers in the waiting room at a railway station in the city of Chingdao, east China's Shandong province.
13. A man carries luggage at a railway station in Beijing.
14. A woman with her luggage at a bus station in Shanghai, China.
15. Chinese people prepare to board a train at a railway station in Beijing.
16. A couple saying goodbye at a train station in Beijing.
17. Bengal white tiger cubs in traditional Chinese costumes chew bones at the Chingdao Zoo, Shandong Province, China.
18. Installation on the eve of the New Year in Hong Kong, January 23, 2012
19. Celebration in the residential area of Baibuting in Wuhan, Hubei province.
20. Pedestrians walk past a paper mosaic depicting a dragon and other signs of the Zodiac. The mosaic was created in one of shopping centers in Nanjing, Jiangsu Province.
