By: Luke Hills
What better way to learn about Chinese culture than the Year of the Rat. You can enjoy events that span from an interactive Kung Fu demonstration to the traditional Chinese lion dance. But first a history lesson.
The Chinese zodiac
The Chinese zodiac consists of 12 animals, which do not equate to specific constellations. Instead, the repeating 12-year cycle—rotating through Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog and Pig— it is based in ancient astronomical observations of Jupiter’s approximately 12-year orbit of the sun, and 2020 is the year of the rat. Each Chinese year couples an animal with one of five rotating elements, water, wood, fire, metal, earth, making 2020 not just the Year of the Rat, but the Year of the Metal Rat.
Facts
- The festival date changes every year.
- The Chinese new year is also called the spring festival.
- The celebration lasts 15 days until the lantern festival
- It is one of the longest public holidays
- The reunion dinner, The reunion dinner on Chinese New Year’s Eve is a big feast to commemorate the past year. This is the most important time to be with families.
- The Chinese new year has the largest usage of fireworks on the planet, and all families set off fireworks the celebrate.
Those are some of the traditions and facts about the Chinese new year. I hope you would decide to celebrate the new year.
