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Celebrating Chinese New Year

The New Year

Wishing your colleagues a Happy New Year and inquiring about how they celebrated the holiday is a great way to build relationships with your team members and colleagues around the world. The Chinese New Year, also known as the Spring Festival, is determined by the lunar calendar and this year the festivities begin on February 9th!

Chinese New Year

The Chinese New Year takes place between late January and early February, beginning on the first day of the new moon in the first lunar month. The Chinese calendar system uses a unique cyclical counting system in which each year is associated with one of 12 different zodiac animals. 2005 is the year of the rooster!

The Chinese New Year is the most important holiday in China. People often prepare for several weeks by thoroughly cleaning out their homes, pasting New Year's prints (nianhua) on doorways, and even repaying personal debts. Chinese also typically purchase new clothes and shoes just before the New Year, and cut their hair as well. Homes are decorated with fresh flowers and trays of candy.

The New Year's holiday holds many different meanings. The traditional practices of this time are focused on making a fresh start — driving out past misfortunes and evil spirits while ushering in good luck and good fortune for the coming year. Chinese commemorate New Year's Eve with large family gatherings and expressions of thanks to ancestors; the whole extended family celebrates together the opening of the New Year. Firecrackers are set off at midnight on New Year's Eve to drive away evil spirits.

Ritual foods, decorations, and other symbolic practices are commonly used to begin the New Year in an auspicious fashion. Scissors and knives are put away and not used during New Year's Day. All brooms and dustpans are stored as well so that that good luck cannot be swept out with the trash. Children are not spanked, and they are told that if they cry on New Year's Day, they may cry for the entire year.

Gifts are also exchanged during the New Year's season. Red is a particularly auspicious color for wrapping gifts at this time, as it is the color of happiness. Children receive small red envelopes (hongbao) with crisp bills inside that are another harbinger of good fortune. Among the many kinds of gifts that are given are tangerines with a bright orange color thought to represent good health and long life.

The New Year's season officially goes on for fifteen days until the middle of the lunar month, although some people start going back to work sooner. A variety of ritual activities take place throughout this period. In some cities where there is a large population of overseas Chinese such as San Francisco, spectators enjoy a parade, including the grand performances of the dragon and lion dances, which express the vitality of the community and ward off evil spirits.

Implications for Foreign Businesspeople

For foreigners who are considering meetings or visits to China during the New Year's season, it is advisable to take into account the fact that businesses are closed several days before and the week after the New Year's date. The New Year's holiday period normally runs for ten days or more. Global teams pursuing collaborative efforts that include Chinese members will need to set up strategies that respect the Chinese holiday season. Ethnic Chinese in other parts of the world — Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Malaysia, and Indonesia, for example — celebrate the New Year according to the same lunar calendar.

New Year's greetings are expressed in China to wish people a long life, happiness, and prosperity. Chinese businesspeople normally return to their ancestral homes for the New Year's celebration. However, they will also take the time to call or meet with their friends and colleagues at some point during this season to convey formal greetings and renew contacts, setting the tone for their relationships in the New Year. For non-Chinese, calling your Chinese counterparts to wish them good luck and happiness in the New Year is normally appreciated. This serves as an indication of your attention to the relationship and not simply the work at hand. Sending a New Year's gift to Chinese counterparts could be another welcome way to show your commitment to the relationship as well as a genuine interest in them and their culture. It is best to check with other Chinese colleagues to determine the appropriate gift. Such gestures may seem small, but when done with genuine intent they can help to nurture important business ties.

Here are some common New Year's greetings:

Xin Nian Kuai Le (Mandarin) — Congratulations on the New Year!

Gong Xi Fa Cai (Mandarin) — Wishing you prosperity!

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