Chinese New Year is on Saturday, February 6, 2027.
Counting down to Saturday, February 6, 2027
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When is Chinese New Year?
Chinese New Year falls on Saturday, February 6, 2027.
About Chinese New Year
Chinese New Year, also called the Spring Festival, is the most important festival in the Chinese calendar. It marks the start of a new year on the traditional Chinese lunisolar calendar and the beginning of spring. The festival falls on the new moon that opens the first lunar month, which places it between January 21 and February 20 on the Gregorian calendar. Each year is associated with one of the twelve animals of the Chinese zodiac, such as the dragon, the horse or the rabbit, in a repeating cycle. The festival is a time for families to come together, and it produces one of the largest annual movements of people in the world as people travel home.
Chinese New Year celebrations run for about 15 days, ending with the Lantern Festival. Customs include a thorough cleaning of the home before the new year, decorating with the colour red, family reunion dinners, and the giving of money in red envelopes. Fireworks and firecrackers, lion and dragon dances, and large public gatherings are common. Red is everywhere, as it is believed to bring luck and to drive off bad fortune. In mainland China the festival brings a public holiday of about a week, and it is also an official holiday in many other places with large Chinese populations, including Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore and Malaysia. It is celebrated by Chinese communities worldwide.
Frequently asked questions
What is Chinese New Year?
Chinese New Year, also known as the Spring Festival, is the most important holiday in the Chinese calendar. It marks the start of a new year on the traditional Chinese lunisolar calendar and the beginning of spring. The festival is a time for family reunions, special meals and customs intended to bring good fortune for the year ahead. It is celebrated in China and by Chinese communities around the world, and each year is linked to one of the twelve animals of the Chinese zodiac.
When is Chinese New Year?
Chinese New Year falls on the new moon that begins the first month of the Chinese lunisolar calendar. On the Gregorian calendar this places it between January 21 and February 20, with the exact date changing each year. The celebrations traditionally run for about 15 days, ending with the Lantern Festival on the first full moon of the new year. Because the date depends on the moon, it moves around within that late-January to mid-February window.
What is the Chinese zodiac?
The Chinese zodiac is a cycle of twelve animals, each linked to one year in a repeating twelve-year sequence. The animals are the rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog and pig. Each Chinese New Year begins a new zodiac year, and people born in that year are associated with its animal. The zodiac is widely used in Chinese culture for marking years and, in popular belief, for personality traits and fortune.
How is Chinese New Year celebrated?
Chinese New Year is celebrated with family reunions and a series of customs meant to bring luck. Homes are cleaned before the new year and decorated in red, the colour of good fortune. Families share a reunion dinner on New Year's Eve, and elders give children money in red envelopes. Fireworks and firecrackers, lion and dragon dances and temple visits are common. The festival lasts about two weeks and ends with the Lantern Festival, marked by glowing lanterns and sweet rice dumplings.
Is Chinese New Year a public holiday?
Chinese New Year is a major public holiday in mainland China, where the official break lasts about a week and travel around it is among the busiest of the year anywhere in the world. It is also an official holiday in Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam and South Korea, among other places. In countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom it is widely celebrated but is not a national public holiday.