Chinese New Year is celebrated with great fanfare and gusto, where people come together and have a joyous time with their families, friends and loved ones. The festival celebrates the beginning of a new year on the traditional lunisolar and solar Chinese calendar. The first day of the Chinese New Year begins on the new moon that appears between 21 January and 20 February. This year, Chinese New Year 2023 falls on Sunday, January 22, 2023, and the celebrations will culminate with the Lantern Festival on February 5, 2023. The celebrations of Chinese New Year last up to 16 days. However, only the first seven days are considered a public holiday (January 22–29). List of Long Weekends in 2023 in India: Get New Year Calendar With Holiday Dates To Make the Most of Your Vacations.

In China, even though the country has officially moved to the Gregorian calendar like the rest of the world, the lunar calendar is still really important. According to traditions, the Spring Festival was originally a ceremonial day to pray to the gods for a good planting and harvest season. The Chinese New Year is a 15-day festival, but as celebrations start on New Year’s Eve, the festivities last 16 days. Lucky Plants for New Year 2023: From Money Tree to Bamboo; 5 Good Luck Plants to Add Endless Happiness and Fortune in The Coming Year.

Significance of Chinese New Year 2023

In China, you’ll hear the Chinese New Year is called Chunjie or the Spring Festival. Traditionally, the Chinese New Year marks the transition between zodiac signs. While 2022 was the ‘Year of the Tiger’, 2023 is the ‘Year of the Rabbit’. Chinese New Year marks the end of the winter season and the beginning of the spring season. In Chinese and other East Asian cultures, the festival is commonly referred to as the Spring Festival. This is because the spring season in the lunisolar calendar traditionally starts with lichun, the first of the twenty-four solar terms the festival celebrates around the time of the Chinese New Year.

On Chinese New Year's Eve, families come together and celebrate the commencement of the New Year by feasting. This feast is extremely important to the Chinese. If any family member can’t make it for the New Year, the rest of the family will leave their spot empty and place a spare set of utensils for them. Food is one of the things that the Chinese take the most pride in. Some must-have dishes include Spring Rolls, Noodles, Dumplings, Hot pot, Steamed Fish, Nian Gao, and Steamed Chicken, among other things.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 31, 2022 10:55 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).