The Chinese New Year

新年快乐！Happy New Year! It may have started two weeks ago but there is still a festive feeling among the Hong Kong and Chinese boarders. It is now the Year of the Horse. Those of us born in the Year of the Horse are considered to be born travellers, something that might apply to many of our community. As many of you will know, like our own zodiac, the Chinese have twelve symbols, but unlike the Western one , the Chinese equivalent gives each of twelve years a symbol. But how did these come about, how did each year get its animal? Here is Vlad with a story from Ancient China:

                   What's the Story Behind the Chinese New Year?

A long time ago the Chinese Jade Emperor decided to name the 12 years of the zodiac. And he thought about animals. So he said the first twelve animals which cross the river will have a year named after them.

All animals lined up near the river. The cat and the rat which were best friends asked the ox to carry them across the river, because they were bad swimmers. And the very friendly and kind ox said OK that’s fine. As the ox swam neared the far bank of the river the rat pushed the cat off the ox and then jumped onto the grass and he came first. Good work! Said Jade you will fist zodiac of the year. Second came the ox.

“Well done!” said Jade Emperor “you will be the second zodiac year”.

After a short period of time with put a lot of effort the tiger came third. And the Emperor congratulated him with third place. Afterwards was the rabbit. It didn’t swim at all. It just jumped from stone to stone and at the end he found a big log from a tree and came fourth.

Emperor: “I am very happy that you came fourth good job!” The dragon took fifth place.

The Jade Emperor asked him: “Why you didn’t come first?”

Dragon: “I helped some people and I made rain, because they hadn’t got any water and then I saw a little rabbit on a log in the water and I blew on it and he came before me.”

 “That was very kind of you” said the Emperor “thank you.”

 Afterwards the snake was very sneaky. It was in the horses’ hooves and at the end of the river the snake jumped from horse and came sixth and the poor horse came seventh.

Not long afterwards, a small ship arrived carrying the goat, the monkey and the rooster. They explained to the Emperor how they did it together. The Emperor was very pleased with the team work. He decided that the goat would be the eighth zodiac animal, the monkey the ninth and the rooster the tenth.

The next animal was a dog. Chinese king asked a dog why you didn’t came first you very good swimmer.

Dog: “The water was very clean so I decided to have a bath in there.” His reward was to have the eleventh year named after him.

There was the last place and it was the boar.

“It took you a long time to cross the river, didn’t it?

The boar: “I was hungry and I thought about to eat and after my very good food I went to sleep.”

“But you did well,” said The Emperor “well done!”

 The cat, which had been pushed, was very upset and he climbed onto land but he was the very last and there weren’t any more years for him and from that day on he hated the mouse for that. 

So now you know, but I bet you were wondering how the Chinese new Year festival itself came about and what goes on during it. Well, here is Terrence to explain:

The Chinese New year festival  (procedure/practise) is as follows:

Two days before the event, Chinese families clean their houses thoroughly.

There is a Cantonese saying of  “Wash away the dirt on nin ya baat” nin ya baat = the 28^th day of the year. This is because they rhyme in Cantonese as the purpose of it is to ward off all the bad luck of they year. This event can be associated with “spring cleaning” in western society.

One of the biggest events of the Chinese New Year's Eve is the Reunion Dinner, named as "Nian Ye Fan” or “tun nin fan".  This meal can be compared as “big” as the Christmas dinner in the western world. The whole family will sit on the Chinese “circle-like” table, this is to gather the whole family closer as a group and represents unity.  

For the meal, they will definitely have dumplings, which symbolizes wealth because their shape resembles a Chinese sycee. Also, niangao simply means “New year cake” but it is a homonym for “a year higher than the previous years”, basically to have a better year. They will also save some pieces for their families or relatives as a gift to wish them good luck in the coming year.

After the meals, some families would go to local temples a couple of hours before the new year to begin, to pray for a prosperous new year by lighting the first incense of the year. Nevertheless, in the modern days, they go out for a “New Year Fair” or for a “count down” event with fireworks.  

The first day is for the welcoming of the idols of the heavens and earth, officially beginning at midnight. It is a traditional practice to light fireworks, burn bamboo sticks and firecrackers and to make as much of a din as possible to chase off the evil spirits as encapsulated by nian (Chinese: 年) of which the term guo nian (simplified Chinese: 过年; traditional Chinese: 過年; pinyin: guònián) was derived. Some consider using knives to be bad luck on New Year's Day, so all food to be consumed is cooked in the days before. On this day, it is considered bad luck to use the broom so they won’t sweep on the day.

 

The 2^nd day is usually for visiting friends and relatives. The married couples, which are parents, have to give a ‘red pocket’ to their friends or relatives’ children to ward off the monster “nian” which is a homonym of ‘year’ in Chinese, (the monster comes from a traditional fictional story). Everyone is meant to say positive words on the day to wish each other good luck.

 

 

Thanks Terrence and here's our man again on one of the most enduring symbols of the Chinese New Year Festival, The Lunar New Year Fair:

The Lunar New Year Fair history can be tracked back to the Wanli Emperor age of the Ming Dynasty. At that time they started selling flowers at a market. The ancient flower market was held everyday, but without a fixed location.

In the 1860s, the flower market turned to the modern mode, which is held on the Lunar New Year's Eve. In 1919, the Lunar New Year Fair changed into a wider range of time.

There are similar events/ functions across the Asia region like Japan and Vietnam during their New Years. 午12:00至午夜12:00

In Hong Kong, the lunar New Year Fair is held in Fifteen parks and playgrounds all over Hong Kong. The most important ones being Victoria Park in Causeway Bay, Hong Kong Island and Fa Hui Park in Mong Kok, Kowloon. It is usually held for a week and this year it started on 25-31Jan, midnight to 6am.

Guangzhou is said to be the source of the Lunar New Year Fair, After the PRC's ruling, the Lunar New Year Fair was only interrupted in a few years during the Cultural Revolution, but it continued in the following years. Guangzhou's market was held 3 days before the New Year comes till the Lunar New Year's Eve.

Nowadays, The Lunar New Year Fairs are known as Flower Markets in Cantonese areas, they sell different kind of goods not only traditional flowers like Plum Blossom, Narcissus, and Kumqua. Hundreds of people congregate in the present-flower market. There are people who write “fai chun” and sell them, inflatable dolls, nostalgic snacks, a variety of traditional Cantonese street food like fish balls, turnip cakes, rice cakes etc. Political memorabilia from the past and a wide mix of new and old-styled gadgets are for sale in different type of stalls.

What an informative piece! I think you'll agree that we've learnt a lot from our reporters this week. It just leaves me to add that two sixth form boarders, Ed and Patricia, will be giving a special assembly tomorrow to mark the occasion that officially ends the Chinese New Year Holiday: the Lantern Festival. There will be plenty going on, so enjoy it! Well done Patricia and Ed!

 

Have a great half term from all at AIB!