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« Back to China Chinese New Year Songs Discover the Chinese selection of traditional songs that can be heard being sung during New Years celebrations. .attachment-featured-image { float:left; vertical-align:text-top; } #video-bar { clear:both; }The Chinese really like to go all out when the moon indicates that the year is over and the new one is on its way. The New Year in China is based on the cycle of the moon because they make use of the lunar calendar. Although it’s never a full moon when it’s the new year you will still be hearing some howling in the form of Chinese new year songs.

It is no surprise that they have a selection of Chinese New Year songs that have been composed for the purpose of celebrating the coming of the New Year

aim to capture the nationalistic spirit of the Chinese people on the one side whereas on the other you have songs that are trying to describe the Chinese perspective of life and the way that they live it.

Chinese New Year is the most important of the traditional Chinese holidays and is celebrated as the Spring Festival

The Chinese New Year is based on the Chinese Calendar which complies with the phases of the moon. According to this, Chinese New Year begins on the first day of the first lunar month of the Chinese Calendar

may vary regional

The color of Red in chinese culture usually means good luck. So like the red packet which is given every Chinese New Year, is just a symbol of good luck in the coming Year. So it is not wise for you to wear red color shirts when you attend a funeral. Golden or yellow color is traditionally the color used in imperial service. The golden color symbolizes wealth and also happiness. Red is also a color in Chinese weddings, because in wedding they tend to be happy and by wearing red things, will help the couple who are getting married chasing out the bad luck on the day they're getting married. Red in here means good luck, happiness, joy, and for the couple, this red color is regarded an energy as red symbolize

joy, and for the couple, this red color is regarded an energy as red symboliz

the Fire element in Chinese metaphysics.

Red envelopes, which are variously known as red packets, ang pow, lai see or hung bao, are small red paper envelopes that contain money and which are often given as gifts. Red envelopes are a Chinese tradition, but they are seen in many other Asian countries as well. Red envelopes can be offered on a number of different occasions.

Features A red envelope can be any shape or size, but are usually the size of playing cards or a little larger. They are often printed with metallic gold ink or with color images. The picture on the front of the envelope will be something perceived as lucky, such as carp, peonies or the Chinese character for happiness. The red envelopes will always contain money.

Function Red envelopes are presented as gifts on occasions that range from birthdays to the Chinese Lunar New Year. They can also be presented at weddings, or simply given at the beginning of a new endeavor, such as starting college. In a professional context, Chinese employers will give their employees a year-end bonus in a red envelope.

In any case, the amount of money given is always even number and amounts ending with 8 are very popular as the number 8 sounds like prosperity.

An amount that ends or involves 4 is usually avoided as 4 in Mandarin and most Chinese dialects sounds like death.  The worse amount to give in a red packet is 44.

To many Chinese, it is considered rude to ask for specific gifts and if unsure of preferences and tastes of the host, giving a gift of cash in a red packet overcomes these issues.

Red envelopes are handed out to younger generations by their parents, grandparents, relatives, and even close neighbors and friends during Chinese New Year. At some companies, workers may also receive a year-end cash bonus tucked inside a red envelope. Red envelopes are also popular gifts for weddings and birthdays. When giving someone a red envelope, us

e both hands to present the red envelope to the recipient. Giving and receiving red envelopes, gifts, and even business cards is a solemn act. Therefore, red envelopes, gifts and name cards are always presented with both hands and also received with both hands.The recipient of a red envelope at Chinese New Year or on his or her birthday should not open it in front of the giver. At Chinese weddings, the procedure is different. At a Chinese wedding, there is a table at the entrance of the wedding reception where guests give their red envelopes to attendants and sign their names on a large scroll. The attendants will immediately open the envelope, count the money inside, and record it on a register next to the guests’ names.A record is kept of how much each guest gives to the newlyweds. This is done for several reasons. One reason is bookkeeping. A record insures the newlyweds know how much each guest gave and can verify the amount of money they receive at the end of the wedding from the attendants is the same as what the guests brought. Another reason is that when unmarried guests eventually get married, the bride and groom are typically obliged to give the guest more money than

money than

Lantern Festival, also called Shangyuan Festival, is celebrated on January 15 of Chinese lunar calendar. It is the first full moon night in the Chinese lunar year, symbolizing the coming back of the spring. Lantern Festival may be regarded as the last day of Spring Festival, the new-year festival of China, in other words, the Spring Festival does not end until the Lantern Festival has passed

It is a Buddhist convention that the monks would visit sarira and lighten up lanterns to show respect to Buddha on Jan 15. Therefore, Emperors of that dynasty, who were determined to promote Buddhism, ordered people to lighten up lanterns in both palaces and temples on that night to show respect to Buddha

In the Song Dynasty, the custom of guessing riddles written on lanterns on Lantern Festival came into being and people at that time wrote riddles on paper strips and then pasted them on the colorful lanterns for others to appreciate and guess