Celebrating World Holidays: Chinese New Year

Chinese New Year is usually celebrated somewhere between January 21^st and February 19^th. The exact date is based on the movements of the moon and falls on the day of the second new moon after the winter solstice. For 2007, the Year of the Pig, celebrations began on February 18^th, 2007.

The years are organized in a twelve-year cycle and each year is represented by a creature - rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, ram, monkey, rooster, dog or pig. People born under a particular animal are said to share some of that animal's characteristics. Use the chart below to calculate your child's sign.

During New Year celebrations, people often wear red clothes and children are given lucky money in red envelopes. The red symbolizes fire, which can drive away bad luck. People gather for great feasts and often light fireworks, which are also said to frighten away evil spirits.

The Lantern Festival and Dragon Dance mark the end of the New Year's celebrations. Lanterns are hung in temples and carried to evening parades, where dragons as long as a hundred feet, weave their way through the streets.

By Rochelle Strauss