By Doyinsola Ishola, Solution Architect at Alfa Financial Software
Lunar New Year (also known as Chinese New Year) is widely celebrated across many East and South East Asian countries including China, Vietnam, Korea, Japan, Mongolia, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand to name a few.
Strictly speaking, Chinese New Year refers to 15 days of festivals, starting with ‘Spring Festival’, which is also the 1st of January (in Chinese it is called month of Zheng 正月) in the Lunar Calendar and ends with Yuan Xiao, the 15th of that month. However, people usually start to prepare for the festival a couple of days beforehand. People usually prepare food, flowers, red packages, and activities such as cleaning and decorating their houses. Family members living in different places also aim to travel back home for this festival, and at the very least, they will try to gather together for the big dinner on the eve of Chinese New Year.
Some history…
The Chinese New Year is also called the Lunar New Year, because of its base on the lunar calendar, a calendar that follows the monthly cycles of the Moon’s phases. This calendar has been widely used in many countries with a high reliance on traditional agriculture, including ancient China. In Chinese and many other Asian cultures, Spring is not only considered the first season for an agricultural cycle, but also considered the fresh start of everything. According to history, around 2,000 B.C., emperor Shun led his people to pray towards the sky and the land for the prosperity of the country and people. This activity became the first record of an activity for the Chinese New Year, and the tradition lives on after that.
This year, the new year lands on the 29th of January 2025.
The Year of the Snake 2025
Possibly the most well known story relating to the New Year is that of the Zodiac animals and how they came to be. If you’ve ever wondered the story behind this, click here.
Although only a myth, the characteristics of each Zodiac sign are considered extremely important in Chinese culture, especially for the timing of births, the success of a marriage pairing (whether the two Zodiac signs of a couple are compatible) and a person’s fortune, or misfortune, for that year.
This year, 2025 is the year of the Snake. In the Chinese zodiac, the Snake is the sixth animal in a 12-year cycle. Snakes are celebrated as symbols of wisdom, elegance, and intuition. They are known for their charm and strategic thinking. They don’t rush into things but instead, carefully plan their moves. If you were born in a Snake year (e.g. 1965, 1977, 1989, 2001), 2025 might be your year to shine. Channel your inner Snake, think before you leap and trust your instincts!
Celebrating New Years
Some personal stories from Alfa about their New Years celebrations
Maggie Kan – Alfa Software Engineer
Chinese New Year’s eve is considered to be the most important day of celebrations for us – we make sure to wear red (it’s a lucky colour!) and my mum cooks up a feast containing 8/9 dishes (as they’re a lucky number also). These dishes can be anything you decide on but, in my family, per superstition, one dish always has to be a whole fish (this is because of the famous saying 年年有余 which means to bring abundance every year). We normally also have a whole steamed chicken, Buddha’s Delight, Hakka fried pork (a staple of my late grandmother), stir fried water spinach and various other dishes including seafood etc.
Being Malaysian Chinese, we also ‘lo hei’ which is a tradition of tossing a plate of sliced vegetables, noodles, sashimi etc in an attempt to conjure more prosperity for the year. Whilst we toss, we shout out all our wishes and dreams for the year and it’s said that the higher we toss, the more luck we will have.
Ryan Fong – Alfa Solution Architect
My parents are from Hong Kong, but I was born and raised in Manchester, UK. The Chinese community in Manchester was incredibly tight-knit, a close and interconnected web where everyone seemed to know each other. It is common for children to affectionately address adults as ‘aunty’ or ‘uncle,’ even those who were not of actual blood relation. Growing up, it was a puzzle for me to figure out who were my true blood-related aunties, uncles, and cousins versus those connected by name alone, but this custom exemplified the deep respect and closeness within the community.
Chinese New Year in my childhood meant one exciting thing – Money! Joking aside, it is tradition in Chinese culture for adults to gift children red envelopes (“lai see” in Cantonese) for Chinese New Year. It felt like the one time of the year when I was most thankful for my parents’ extensive social circle!
However, beyond the excitement of receiving far more cash than any child should really have, the red envelope holds profound significance deeply rooted in my culture. Firstly, the vibrant red colour, considered the luckiest in Chinese culture, embodies positive energy, happiness, success, and good fortune. This symbolism extends to Chinese weddings, where brides would traditionally don red gowns. Beyond its auspicious colour, the red envelope serves as a vessel for good luck and blessings, and is believed to ward off evil spirits – a notion held by many in my culture. Additionally, it acts as a customary gesture of respect and gratitude. Older family members use this tradition to transfer blessings, wealth, and positive energy to the younger generation, while the young express gratitude to their ancestors for their contributions to family prosperity.
The money inside the envelope also carries significance. It is not about the monetary value per se, rather, it is about the well-wishing and blessings conveyed through the gesture. Even numbers are favoured over odd ones, representing balance and harmony in Chinese culture. However, the number four is avoided due to its likeness in sound and association with ‘death,’ while eight is considered exceptionally lucky, resonating with the word for ‘prosperity.’
Chinese culture in general is steeped in superstition and symbolism. Several factors contribute to the prevalence of superstition, such as the concepts of Yin and Yang, Confucianism, Daoism, numerology, astrology, Feng Shui, and the worship of local deities and spirits. As someone who grew up in the UK, I used to view many of these superstitions as peculiar and even embarrassing to explain to classmates. However, with age came a deeper appreciation for the richness of my cultural heritage and its respect for tradition, even if I do not follow many of these superstitions myself.
While modernisation and globalisation have brought about changes to Chinese society, these superstitions and customs serve as a vital link to our cultural heritage, maintaining a sense of continuity with our past. Chinese New Year, beyond the festive celebrations, is a personal reminder and time for me to cherish my family and upbringing, honour my cultural roots, and express gratitude for the traditions that have shaped my identity.
David Yang – Alfa Software Engineer
Although the last time I had my Chinese new year back home was back in 2016, I always remember each and every one of my experiences. Typically a few days before the new year, my parents would take us back to our hometown, where most of our relatives live for reunion, and we would spend a few days there. Sometimes, our relatives would also come down to where my family lives to celebrate with us.
New Years Decoration
My family would always spend time and effort putting up decorations for Chinese new year. One of the most important parts would be put on Chun Lian. Chun Lian (some call it Fai Chun) is a traditional decoration, typically with phrases or sentences written in Chinese calligraphy on red banners to create a jubilant festive atmosphere since the phrases written on it means good luck and prosperity. We would also decorate the house with a pot of mandarin orange, as the pronunciation of the mandarin orange is similar to the Chinese character with the meaning auspicious.
As you could probably guess, the colour red is the most favoured colour during the Chinese New Year. That’s why almost every piece of New Year’s decoration is painted in red.
Typical food we have during Chinese New Year
Dumplings: Dumplings are associated with wealthiness: according to tradition, the more dumplings you eat during New Years dinner, the wealthier you will be in the coming year. Fun fact: it is forbidden to arrange dumplings in circles. Dumplings have to be arranged in line to symbolize life going somewhere.
Fish: A traditional Chinese New Year dish, and it is usually steamed. Like mentioned earlier, eating fish is wishing to bring abundance in the coming year. The fish should be the last dish left on the dinner table with some leftovers: the fish is considered a good omen to having more money in the upcoming year. For this reason, the fish has to be carefully positioned on the dinner table:
- The head should be placed toward distinguished guests or elders;
- Diners can enjoy the fish only after the one who faces the fish head eats first;
- The fish shouldn’t be moved.
While eating fish, we usually accompany it by a popular saying: “May you always have abundance year after year.”
Make sure to find out what celebrations are happening near you!
Here are some suggestions:
- London, UK
- Lion Dance
- Date: 1st February 2025
- Location: Throughout Chinatown
- Time: 11.00 am – 5.00 pm
- Chinese New Year Parade
- Date: 2nd February 2025
- Location: Trafalgar Square and Chinatown
- Time: 10.00 am – 11.45 am from East of Trafalgar Square
- Community stage and exhibition
- Date: 2nd February 2025
- Location: Dean Street and Shaftesbury Avenue
- Time: 12:00 midday – 6.00 pm
- Cultural workshops and family activities
- Date: 2nd February 2025
- Location: Leicester Square
- Time: 12.00 midday – 5.00 pm
- Lion Dance
- Manchester, UK
- Manchester’s legendary Dragon Parade
- Date: 1st February 2025
- Location: Start Point – Oxford Street at the Junction with George Street
- Time: 12:00 midday
- Chinese New Year at Manchester Central Library
- Date: 1st February (1:00 pm – 4:00 pm) & 2nd February (11:30 am– 3:00 pm) 2025
- Location: Manchester Central Library, St Peter’s Square Manchester, Greater Manchester M2 5PD
- Circle Square Manchester, Lancashire
- Date: 2nd February 2025
- Location: Hello Oriental, Circle Square, Manchester
- Time: from 12:00 midday
- Manchester’s legendary Dragon Parade
From The Leasing Foundation to you, we wish you a happy new year.
新年快乐, 恭喜發財!
