Lunar New Year is one of the most important celebrations of the year among East and Southeast Asian cultures, including Chinese, Vietnamese and Korean communities, among others. The New Year celebration is usually celebrated for multiple days—not just one day as in the Gregorian calendar’s New Year. In 2024, Lunar New Year begins on February 10.

China’s Lunar New Year is known as the Spring Festival or Chūnjié in Mandarin, while Koreans call it Seollal and Vietnamese refer to it as Tết.

Tied to the lunar calendar, the holiday began as a time for feasting and to honor household and heavenly deities, as well as ancestors. The New Year typically begins with the first new moon that occurs between the end of January and spans the first 15 days of the first month of the lunar calendar—until the full moon arrives.

---

Lunar New Year Foods and Traditions

Each culture celebrates the Lunar New Year differently with various foods and traditions that symbolize prosperity, abundance and togetherness. In preparation for the Lunar New Year, houses are thoroughly cleaned to rid them of inauspicious spirits, which might have collected during the old year. Cleaning is also meant to open space for good will and good luck.

Some households hold rituals to offer food and paper icons to ancestors. Others post red paper and banners inscribed with calligraphy messages of good health and fortune in front of, and inside, homes. Elders give out envelopes containing money to children. Foods made from glutinous rice are commonly eaten, as these foods represent togetherness. Other foods symbolize prosperity, abundance and good luck.

---

Zodiac Animals

Each year in the Lunar calendar is represented by one of 12 zodiac animals included in the cycle of 12 stations or “signs” along the apparent path of the sun through the cosmos. 

The 12 zodiac animals are the rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, sheep, monkey, rooster, dog and pig. In addition to the animals, five elements of earth, water, fire, wood and metal are also mapped onto the traditional lunar calendar. Each year is associated with an animal that corresponds to an element.

The year 2024 is slated to be the year of the dragon. The year of the dragon last came up in 2012.

I am a dragon; a FIRE dragon.

And, you ask?

Based on the Chinese Zodiac Calendar, not only am I a dragon but a Fire Dragon at that! So cool.

I can agree to the first 50% of smart, and easygoing. As far as agile, and flexible … well, those were my younger years. Perhaps I can get back to that.

I didn’t know my lucky numbers were 2, and 7. I was born on February 7th, so that one I understand. It’s also a prime number. 2 is also a prime number, and my mother was born on February 2nd. White is my lucky number? HM. I don’t wear white primarily because I’m messy, and accident prone. I like the thought of a lucky element though … rose gold! Pentatonix sang a song titled: Rose Gold.

What’s It Mean To Be A Dragon?

What personality is a Dragon?

The personality traits of people born in the year of the dragon are: charismatic, intelligent, confident, powerful and they are naturally lucky and gifted. In everything that they do, they tend to do it to the best of their ability with high standards. 

Aiight, well I admit that most of that applies to me.

I wouldn’t necessarily say it’s “my year”, but from the Far East point-of-view the upcoming year seems optimistic. Time will tell …