New Year in North China

Filed under:New Year — posted by HAD on 02/21/2010 @ 2:59 am

New Year’s Eve tradition and good dumplings, noodles chopped dumplings dumplings in preparation for the first form because it is not surgery or who started this. Since the 80’s, the New Year’s Eve watching China Central Television’s Spring Festival Gala has become the tradition of many families. With the changes in economic conditions in mainland China and the Spring Festival Evening viewers agree that there are many families fall into the restaurant or carry out other activities in the New Year.
New Year first day: Good morning dumplings. Traditionally, Beijing (basically the northern region of the tradition) for the elderly who started this is not out of the house, relatives, friends, colleagues with each other Happy New Year. Yangtze River with a custom of New Year’s Day breakfast to eat glutinous rice balls symbolize round round and round, sweet sweet honey.
New Year NO.2 Day: To sacrifice the God of Wealth, drink, “gold ingot Soup” (wonton). In general practice is to return to her family in northern New Year reunion.

New Year NO.3 Day: ancestors, generally a parent has died of married women would return to her family worship on this day, and incidentally New Year. With a lucid, “Shangfen” different, ancestor worship is worship of ancestral tablets. However, in rural areas in Hebei and other places, this day was also to the Shang Fen. Generally required to bring snacks, wine and other offerings to the deceased ancestors to worship, and setting off firecrackers to their ancestors, “the New Year.” General Shangfen only allows children etc., of other family names who married into the same clan is not involved in ancestor worship.

New Year NO.4 Day: General parents were alive, married, or married women will be back to her parents Happy New Year on this day

New Year NO.5 Day: poor day, in northern China, this day people generally do not have to go out New Year’s, because this day is “mafia Day”, usually starting from the Spring Festival at home until this days to sweep out the refuse, and then setting off firecrackers to celebrate; there is a Vice-couplet “beast to discard their hands to welcome into the God of Wealth,” namely, the description of this custom. Some young people will generally only be held on this day gathering of friends or classmates. Also known as “breaking five” is to remain at home to eat dumplings.

New Year NO.6 Day: opening

New Year NO.7 Day: extraordinary wins Festival

New Year NO.8 Day: Festival stars. Beijing is now the various temple activities are usually started from the first form, to the end of the seventh day, or eighth day.

With regard to the New Year in northern China have such folk: from the beginning the Chinese lunar calendar on the 23rd, 23 Tanggua stick; 24 sweep the house; 25 grinding tofu; 26 to the flesh; 27 killed chickens; 28 facial hair; 29 steamed buns; New Year’s Eve boil night view.

The origin of Chinese New Year

Filed under:New Year — posted by HAD on @ 2:32 am

The origin of Chinese New Year

Chinese New Year customs when it is difficult from the elegant, but is generally believed that originated in China during the first end of the year the Shang ritual, ancestor worship activities (December Festival); legendary Yao and Shun, when there as early as the Spring Festival custom. The first month in lunar calendar is the beginning of the year, while the first month in early or mid-, most of the case is just the beginning of spring (a small number of cases beginning of spring is the end of the twelfth lunar month in the lunar calendar). Festival time for sure and agriculture, crafts to affect; Oracle and Clementi in the year the word has a millet sprays mature image. Of the last day of the Lunar year (months greatly 30, on a small 29), called “New Year’s Eve,” New Year’s Eve family reunion dinner to eat (Chinese year of the last meal), dinner in future we have made New Year’s money and boil Nianye (Shou Sui) customs, said the Lunar New Year last year from the defensive to the last day of the first day of next year.

In the history of different dynasties, the time is not the same as the Spring Festival. Xia substituting January for the first year; to December as the Sui Shou Shang, Zhou Dynasty to the Sui Shou in November, with October as the Sui Shou Qin. Western Han Dynasty, the Han Dynasty emperor declared the implementation of Taichu calendar, it is clear that in January started this Suishou to them as traditional Chinese lunar calendar New Year.

Chinese New Year in the Gregorian calendar January 21 to February 20 swim between. Beginning of spring is usually in the February 4 or February 5.



image: detail of installation by Bronwyn Lace