The Lunar New Year (農曆新年) is undoubtedly one of the most important traditional holidays in Taiwan, and it can best be described as a hybrid between Christmas and New Years in terms of  significance and spirit as it melds together traditions, family gatherings, gifts and a focus on bidding farewell to the old and welcoming the new.  And while the focus here is how the holiday is celebrated in Taiwan, it must be noted that the Lunar New Year is observed by numerous Asian countries from China to South Korea to Singapore to Vietnam and more. 

Officially the Lunar New Year holiday lasts 15 days, starting with the new moon of the first month of the new lunar year and ending with the first full moon of the first month.  Being based on the lunar calendar, the exact dates of the holiday vary each year but it usually falls some time between the second half of January and the second half of February.  It is also called the Spring Festival (春節) as it originally represented the coming of springing and was used as a time marker to assist farmers in better preparing their crops.  These days there are less crops to prepare for but employees and businesses usually have a week off whereas schools are usually closed for 2 weeks or so.

Origins of the Lunar New Year celebrations

Legend has it that thousands of years ago in China there was a ferocious beast with the body of a bull and head of a lion called “Nian” (年獸).  Each year on the eve before the new lunar year, this beast would come into the village, wreak havoc on homes, feed on livestock and even people.  The villagers would be forced to leave town every year to avoid the beast but eventually a wise old man figured out that the beast was afraid of the color red, loud noises and flares of light.  That year the old man stayed and placed red cloth on the doors and lit bamboo stalks to create loud explosions.  He succeeded in fending off the beast so from then on the villagers adopted the same methods and all these practices evolved into the red spring couplet scrolls and firecrackers that we see for the Lunar New Year today.

Traditions of the Lunar New Year

In Taiwan, shopping and preparations for the lunar new year festivities start weeks in advance.  Similar to Christmas markets in the US and Europe, dense and bustling new years markets spring up in most of the major cities to sell specialty food items and decorations for the holidays.  One of the most famous is on Dihua Street in Taipei.  It is located in an area that was originally the main trading port since the time of the Dutch occupation in the 1600s.  The photos provided in this travelogue are quite evocative of the festive mood the Dihua Street new years market.

• Spring Cleaning

After all the preparatory shopping is completed, the day before the lunar new year is the time for a thorough spring cleaning.  Not only is it generally good to clean and declutter homes, the main reason for removing old, unwanted items is to make room for new luck to arrive in the coming year.  Similarly, sweeping dirt out of the house has the twofold purpose of casting out bad luck and negative energy from the past year to welcome good luck and positive energy.  However, all cleaning must stop during the first days of the new year for fear of accidentally sweeping out all the fresh new luck that was just welcomed in.

• Red couplet scrolls and wall hangings

  Red couplet scrolls (春聯) painted with auspicious wise messages or poems are hung at the entrance to homes and businesses during the lunar new year with the belief that they will bring good luck and wealth to those who write the scrolls and those who live or work where they are hung.  Old scrolls from the prior year should be removed and replaced with freshly painted scrolls in time for the festivities.  Along with the scrolls are red diamond-shaped paper squares with beautiful calligraphic Chinese symbols and characters painted on them.  The most popular words written are good fortune (福) or spring (春); they are usually hung upside down, because the word for “upside down” (倒) is a homonym for the word “to arrive” (到) so it symbolizes that good fortune is arriving.

• Common New Year sayings

The period of the Lunar New Year celebrations is a time to be joyful so people are expected to make an effort at avoiding confrontation, negative thoughts and words.  Everyone stays positive so that happiness and good luck will follow you for the whole year and some of the most popular greetings during that period are:

新年快樂 (Xin Nian Kuai Le) = Happy New Year!  

恭喜發財 (Gong Xi Fa Cai) = Congratulations, may you have wealth! 

• Red envelopes (紅包)

One of the most anticipated parts of the lunar new year are the festive red envelopes filled with crisp banknotes.  They are usually filled with even amounts starting with 6s and 8s being the most auspicious, ie. 600, 800, 888, etc.  Although the number 4 is even, it is considered unlucky as it is almost homonymous with the word for death in Mandarin.  Children are the main beneficiaries of red envelopes as well as elders and unmarried adults.  As with all things in life, those of the sandwich generation usually get nothing!

• Firecrackers

Firecrackers were traditionally set off to scare away the Nian beast as mentioned in the origins of the holiday.  However, these days firecrackers are also set off to ward off all manner of evil spirits and to welcome the new year with a festive mood. They can be seen and heard all throughout the holiday period but many families like to set them off after midnight, following the big new years eve dinner.

• New clothes, red clothes

The Lunar New Year is all about new beginnings and it is seen as an opportunity to refresh and set a positive tone for the coming year.  Many people like to start by wearing new clothes on the first few days of the lunar new year along with at least one red article with red underwear being quite popular.  For maximum fortune, go all out and try to wear a new, red outfit!

• Temple visits

During the Lunar New Year, plenty of worshippers fill the various temples of Taiwan to light incense to pray for health, safety and good fortune for the coming year.  Some temples will shut their doors just prior to midnight on New Year’s Eve while throngs of worshippers eagerly gather outside.  Once the bell strikes midnight, the temple gates will open and the worshippers will rush in to be the first person to insert incense in the incense burner for good luck.

Programming for the Lunar New Year holidays

With the Lunar New Year spanning 15 days, most days have a designated program and purpose.  While there are still many stalwarts of tradition, Taiwan is no exception when it comes to evolving habits and practices and many in the younger generation have abbreviated celebrations and take advantage of the extended  time off to travel.  For those who adhere to customs, here is a general program for the holiday period:

• New Years Eve

Many people travel to their parents’ or grandparents’ homes to gather for a big holiday dinner with some of the symbolic foods listed in the section below.  The lucky red envelopes are given following dinner and families continue to spend time together chatting, eating snacks or playing Mah Jong.  This is one night when children are encouraged to stay up late because tradition has it that the later the children stay up the more longevity the elders will enjoy.  Some families will light firecrackers at midnight to ring in the new year.

• New Years Day

Waking up to a new year, it is traditionally a time to make offerings to ancestors and to pray to the gods.  Young people are supposed to go pay visits to their elders with “New Years” greetings. Some people will don new clothes to go out to visit relatives and friends to wish each other good fortune for the coming year.  It is also the time when you can stumble upon lion and dragon dances.

• Day 2 of the lunar new year

This is the traditional day for married daughters to return to visit her maiden family.

• Day 3 of the lunar new year

Continued eating, relaxing and visits of friends.

• Day 4 of the lunar new year

Festivities start to wind down.  For more traditional families, the 4th day is also the day when the Kitchen God and his cohort returns from the heavens so offerings need to be prepared to welcome them.

• Day 5 of the lunar new year

Life starts to return to normal with offices and businesses reopening.

• Day 9 of the lunar new year

The ninth day of the Lunar New Year is the Jade Emperor’s birthday and a time for believers to prepare offerings either in their home patios or their temple courtyards to celebrate.

• Day 15 of the lunar new year

The last day of the Lunar New Year is the Lantern Festival (元宵節), which originated in the belief that celestial spirits could be seen flying about during the first full moon of the new lunar year so lanterns were lit to aid in the search.  Nowadays, the lantern festival is jubilant time with impressive light displays and lantern competitions.  Each year a different city in Taiwan hosts the official lantern festival display and they have become increasingly elaborate affairs.  The photos below are from the Lantern Festival in Taichung.