A guide from 2025 to the Lunar New Year as we slide into the Year of the Snake

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Seeing an abundance of red lately? From clothing stores to city streets, the fiery hue will be on display a lot in the coming days.

It’s all part of the fun as the world comes together to celebrate the Lunar New Year, widely considered the most important event of the year in China and Chinese communities around the planet.

Marking the first new moon in the lunar calendar, it falls on January 29 in 2025 and starts the 15-day Spring Festival. Celebrations vary depending on the country or region, but there are a few common traditions.

Whether you’re unfamiliar with the occasion or need a refresher, this guide to ushering in the year of the snake has you covered.

Incredibly complex, the Chinese zodiac calendar is best described as a 12-year cycle represented by 12 animals, in this order: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig.

Your personal zodiac sign is determined by your Year of birthwhich means 2025 will welcome lots of baby snakes. Children born in the last Lunar New Year calendar year were Dragons, while those born on or after the Lunar New Year of 2026 will be Horses, and so on.

Adherents believe that for each Chinese zodiac sign, luck will largely depend on the positions of Tai Sui – A collective name for the stellar deities believed to rotate parallel to and in the opposite direction to Jupiter.

Geomancy Masters may interpret the data differently, but there is usually a consensus on what the year means for each star sign based on star positions.

For many devotees, the Lunar New Year is an ideal time to visit a temple to make blessings depending on what the stars have to say about their particular zodiac sign in the coming months. (More on that below.)

Why light fireworks and wear red? Meet Nian

There are countless folktales linked to the Lunar New Year, but the myth of Nine stands out as one of the funniest.

According to legend, every New Year’s Eve, this ferocious underwater beast with sharp teeth and horns would crawl onto the land and attack a nearby village.

On one such occasion as the villagers rushed to hide, a mysterious old man appeared and insisted on sticking around despite warnings of impending doom.

To the surprise of the villagers, the old man and the village survived completely unscathed.

The man claimed to have scared Nian away by hanging red banners on his door, lighting fireworks and donning red clothes.

This is why wearing the fiery color along with hanging banners and lighting fireworks or fireworks are Lunar New Year traditions, all of which are still followed today.

Fun aside, Lunar New Year can actually be a lot of work. Festivities often last for 15 days – sometimes even more – with various tasks and activities taking place during this period.

It all begins about a week before the new year.

Festive cakes and puddings are made on the 24th day of the last lunar month (January 23rd in 2025). Why? The word for cakes and puddings is Gao in Mandarin and Goo in Cantonese, that sounds the same as the word for “tall.”

This means that eating these treats is believed to lead to improvements and growth in the coming year. )

And don’t forget our friend Nian. No measurement of the Lunar New Year would be complete without the aforementioned hanging of red banners bearing auspicious phrases and idioms (called Fai Chun in Cantonese and Chunlian in Mandarin) at home – starting with one’s front door.

These will do double duty – keeping Nian away and inviting good luck.

Some of the prep work is not as enjoyable. Many believe that a major cleanup should take place at home on the 28th day of the last lunar month, which falls on January 27th this year.

The goal is to rid your home of any bad luck that has accumulated over the past year. Some believers won’t even sweep or take out the trash for the first five days of the new year for fear that they will wash away all the fresh good luck.

On a related note, many say you shouldn’t wash or cut your hair on the first day of the new year either.

Why? Because the Chinese character for the word “hair” is the first character in the word for Prosper. Therefore, washing or cutting it off is seen as washing away your wealth.

(Read more Lunar New Year dos and don’ts here.)

A large family reunion dinner is usually held on Lunar New Year’s Eve, which falls on January 28 this year.

The menu is carefully chosen to include dishes associated with good luck, including fish (the Chinese word for it also sounds like “surplus”), puddings (symbolizing progress) and foods that resemble gold content (such as dumplings).

In China, the foods served at these classic dinners vary from north to south. For example, Northern Chinese tend to have dumplings and noodles, while Southern Chinese cannot live without steamed rice.

Lunar New Year celebrations can look very different outside of China. In Malaysia and Singapore, gatherings are not complete without a loud and chaotic “prosperity toss” or Yushengwhen eateries stir and toss thinly sliced ​​vegetables and raw fish with chopsticks before a meal.

Lunar New Year’s Day: Family visits and red packets

The first few days of the Lunar New Year, especially the first two days, are often a test of one’s stamina, appetite and social skills, as many people have to travel and visit close family, other relatives and friends.

Bags are filled with gifts and fruits to give out in other people’s homes. Visitors will again be showered with gifts after exchanging conversations about Lunar New Year treats.

In many families, married people are expected to give red packets filled with money to those who have not yet tied the knot – both children and unmarried juniors.

It is believed that these envelopes – known as Hongbao/Lai See – could protect children by warding off evil spirits, called Sui.

Other countries have their own traditions. In South Korea, for example, it is called the Lunar New Year festival Seollal. The first three days are filled with homage to ancestors, festive games and foods such as rice cakes (Tteokguk) and pancakes (Jeon).

Day three of the Lunar New Year (which falls on January 31 in 2025) is named CHI KOU/CHEK HAUor red mouth.

It is believed that arguments are more likely to happen on this day, so some people will avoid social interactions and instead visit temples to make offerings to offset any potential bad luck.

As mentioned earlier, for many people, the Lunar New Year is a time to consult the stars to find out what lies ahead in the coming months.

Every year, certain Chinese zodiac signs fight negatively along with the stars, so temple visits are considered a good way to resolve these conflicts and bring peace in the coming months.

The seventh day of the Lunar New Year (February 4, 2025) is said to be when the Chinese Mother Goddess, Nowcreated humanity. Thus it is called Renri/Jan Jat (The People’s Birthday).

Different societies in Asia serve different “birthday” foods on that day.

For example, Cantonese people eat dishes made from seven types of vegetables. In Malaysia and Singapore, “prosperity throws” may appear on tables.

The highlight of the entire Spring Festival, the Lantern Festival happens on the 15th and final day (February 12 in 2025).

Called Yuan Xiao Jie In Mandarin Chinese, it is considered the perfect end to the week-long lunar preparations and celebrations for lunar parties.

The Lantern Festival celebrates the first full moon of the year – hence the name (Yuan means beginning. Xiao means night).

It marks the departure of winter and the beginning of the spring season.

On this day, people light lanterns to symbolize driving out darkness and bringing hope for the coming year.

In ancient Chinese society, it was the only day when young girls were allowed to go out to admire the lanterns and meet boys. As a result, it has also been called the Chinese Valentine’s Day.

Today, cities around the world still put on massive lantern displays and fairs on the last day of the festival.