Happy Chinese New Year!

Happy Chinese New Year! 新年快樂! Kung Hey Fat Choy! 恭喜發財! Compass Offices wishes you fortune and a prosperous one in the Year of the Dragon

Everyone is excited for the new year as they say goodbye to the Year of the Rabbit and welcome the Year of the Dragon.   

The Chinese new year celebration is one of the most important dates for the majority of Chinese because it signifies a time for families to gather together, especially for those who left home to work in the city, which only allows them to see their family members once a year. 

During this time every year, we see red decorations almost everywhere we go and most usually, Chinese people wear red on the day of the New Year. 

Origins of Chinese New Year

Ever wonder why it is always red instead of other colours like orange, purple, blue, or green?

According to myths and legends, feroucious beasts by name Nian usually come out from the forests during new years day to hunt for food, killing live stocks and attacking humans. 

So in order to keep themselves safe, the Chinese would put food outside their doors to feed these beasts so they do not attack human beings or other animals. 

It was also said that these beasts were afraid of the colour red and loud noises, so Chinese people have been posting fortune sayings on red paper outside their doors, and used red-coloured decorations to scare off these beasts ever since then. 

They also made use of firecrackers that were also nicely wrapped in red decoration paper to keep the Nian beasts away. 

Hong Kong celebrated the new year's with firecrackers up to around the 1950's, as it was later prohibited due to safety conditions.

The end of the Chinese new year celebration is marked by the 15^th day of the first month on the lunar calendar.

According to the traditions, each day represents a different activity or followed by a specific tradition.