Learn the origin of China's Spring Festival

Posted by ugfanfan on October 27th, 2014

Origin & Folklores&Legend

A “New Year” legend goes that in ancient times a beast called “Year” often attacked house animals in warm seasons, and in the cold winter it would eat humans when the food resources were scarce. People were living in ultimate fear because they had to fight with it all the time. Finally, they discovered the Year beast was afraid of three things: red color, fire light and loud sound. Therefore, one night in wintertime people had to hang red colored wooden boards on their houses’ doorframe, make bonfire outside the door, and hit gongs and drums all night long. The beast feared, not entering the village and staying in its mountain den. The following day people celebrated their victory over the wild beast and a banquet was held. This tradition is still followed today by Chinese as a New Year celebration, to which the night is the New Year’s Eve, and the New Year’s Day follows.

Harvest Thanksgiving Formalized During Han Dynasty

Chinese New Year celebrations have their origin with end-of-harvest celebrations when people would offer thanks to gods for good harvests and entreaty for a good crop in the following year. Although they varied according to the different calendars used, the customs were formalized under Han Dynasty (206BC-AD 25) rule.

Traditions Blossom under Tang Dynasty

Varied festivals around god worship, sacrifice and celebration held at the end of the winter season and at the beginning of the spring were unified under the Han Dynasty rulers and consolidated, with their adoption of the formal Taichu calendar, to the first day of the first lunar month. During the economically prosperous and politically stable Tang Dynasty (AD 618-907), celebrations around the New Year blossomed. Traditional customs around superstitions and worship gradually became means for people simply to celebrate and enjoy time with their families.

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