Chinese New Year

One of the most significant traditions in Chinese culture is the celebration of the New Year! The origin of this extensively celebrated holiday is one of legend, but it is just as exciting and awe-inspiring as the New Year celebration itself.

Legend has it that each year around spring time the Nian (a beast that lives undersea) leaves his dwelling to assault and kill the local village people, mainly the children! The villagers learned to defend themselves by exploiting the beast weakness; mainly its sensitivity to loud noise and its extreme fear of the color red!

The villagers devised a plan to rid themselves of the Nian. The plan consisted of banging drums and hurling firecrackers to produce a massive amount of noise which scared the Nian! After that day the Nian has never been seen again, but it is believed to still exist and each year the ritual that was performed by the villagers is recreated to keep the Nian at bay.

12 Animals of The Zodiac
The Chinese lunar calendar is considered to be the longest chronological record of time, dating back to 2637 BC when the zodiac was first introduced. Divided into a twelve-year cycle, each Chinese lunar year is represented by an animal or sign.

Year	Chinese New Year Begins	Animal Sign
2010	February 14	Tiger
2011	February 3	Rabbit
2012	January 23	Dragon
2013	February 10	Snake
2014	January 31	Horse
2015	February 19	Sheep
2016	February 8	Monkey
2017	January 28	Rooster
2018	February 16	Dog
2019	February 5	Pig
2020	January 25	Rat
2021	February 12	Ox