The celebration of this time is a public holiday. It begins on the first day of the first month of the Chinese calendar and lasts for fifteen days. It is also known as 'the Chinese Lunar New Year' and the 'Spring Festival' as it welcomes the spring season. The last day is the most special and is called the Lantern Festival (Shang Yuan Festival, in Chinese). It is the first night of the year with a full moon in that lunar year! This fifteen-day holiday overrules all the other Chinese holidays and is the longest amongst them all. It is the oldest of all Chinese celebrations and brings to one's mind the beliefs and the behaviour of their ancestors, having many traditions and myths surrounding it. It is celebrated not only by the Chinese but also by the neighbouring countries which have had Chinese influence in earlier centuries namely Japan, Korea, Vietnam, Mongolia and Bhutan.

The Chinese New Year is a time for reconciliation. They endeavor to forget all previous grudges, and sincerely desire peace, harmony and happiness for each one they know. It is a time to get united and enjoy the upcoming New Year with a new beginning in its fullness!

Outside China, the Chinese years are counted from the time of the Yellow Emperor, considered to have founded the Chinese civilization though in China itself, they do not count years sequentially.

Chinese New Year Dates

Given below is a list of years from 2006 to 2021 showing the Chinese New Year dates for each year according to the English Calendar. English dates on the right represents the first day of the first Chinese month as per the Chinese calendar.

  • Chinese New Year date 2006 - January 29, 2006
  • Chinese New Year date 2007 - February 18, 2007
  • Chinese New Year date 2008 - February 7, 2008
  • Chinese New Year date 2009 - January 26, 2009
  • Chinese New Year date 2010 - February 14, 2010
  • Chinese New Year date 2011 - February 3, 2011
  • Chinese New Year date 2012 - January 23, 2012
  • Chinese New Year date 2013 - February 10, 2013
  • Chinese New Year date 2014 - January 31, 2014
  • Chinese New Year date 2015 - January 20, 2015
  • Chinese New Year date 2016 - February 8, 2016
  • Chinese New Year date 2017 - January 28, 2017
  • Chinese New Year date 2018 - February 16, 2018
  • Chinese New Year date 2019 - February 5, 2019
  • Chinese New Year date 2020 - January 25, 2020
  • Chinese New Year date 2021 - February 12, 2021