Traditional foods that represent good fortune such as fish (abundance) and mandarin oranges (auspiciousness) are prepared. The Lunar New Year is the most celebrated Asian festival in the world with the largest celebrations taking place in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Vietnam. Preparations begin ten days before the lunar new year with many cleaning their homes as a way to clear out bad luck from the previous year. Various dances, including lion and dragon dances. In contrast to festivities tied to the solar Gregorian calendar, people around the world align their new year’s celebrations based on the ancient lunisolar Chinese calendar system, which follows the cycles of the moon and sun.Ī new year symbolizes a fresh start and many traditions capture this concept. Join us every weekend in February to celebrate the festival of the new moon and animals of the Chinese Zodiac. The Year of the Tiger officially begins February 1, but you can celebrate any time and anywhere with a range of digital resources from the Walters Art Museum. Lunar New Year celebrations in the United States have, over the years, included activities and events such as: Lunar New Year parades featuring colorful costumes, floats, firecrackers and other attractions.

With radiant lanterns, traditional foods, and an air of anticipation for what’s to come, today’s Doodle welcomes the Year of the Tiger on the first day of the Lunar New Year. A lunar calendar is a calendar based on the monthly cycles of the Moons phases (synodic months, lunations), in contrast to solar calendars, whose annual cycles are based only directly on the solar year.The most commonly used calendar, the Gregorian calendar, is a solar calendar system that originally evolved out of a lunar calendar system.

Lunar new year