Celebrated on 02/01/2026
Chinese New Year is the longest and most important festival in the Chinese calendar, lasting 15 days. Each year is associated with one of 12 zodiac animals, and 2025 will be the Year of the Snake. The holiday is celebrated by over 1.5 billion people worldwide, making it one of the largest annual migrations as families travel to reunite.
Chinese New Year, also known as the Spring Festival, has origins dating back over 3,500 years to the Shang Dynasty. It began as a celebration to mark the end of winter and the beginning of spring, tied to the lunar-solar calendar. Legend says the festival started with the fight against a mythical beast called Nian, who would come on the first day of the new year to devour livestock and villagers. People discovered that loud noises, bright lights, and the color red scared Nian away, leading to traditions like fireworks, lanterns, and red decorations.
Over millennia, Chinese New Year evolved from a simple agricultural ritual into a grand cultural celebration. During the Han Dynasty, the festival became more formalized with specific customs like offering sacrifices to ancestors. In modern times, it is a public holiday in China and many other countries, featuring family reunions, feasts, and the giving of red envelopes (hongbao) containing money. The 15-day celebration includes the Lantern Festival on the final day, with parades, dragon dances, and thousands of lanterns lighting up the night sky. Today, it is also a global event, with major cities like New York and London hosting parades and cultural performances.
Explore more celebrations, trivia, and quests on National Day Quest.