Chinese New Year

Many Chinese children dress in new clothes to celebrate the Chinese New Year. People carry lanterns /
ln.tn/ and join in a huge parade /pred/ led by a silk dragon /dr.n/ , the Chinese symbol of
strength /stre/. According to legend /led.nd/, the dragon hibernates /ha.b.net/ most of the
year, so people throw firecrackers /fakrk.r/ to keep the dragon awake.
In the Chinese lunar /lu.nr/ calendar each of the 12 years is named after an animal. According to
Legend, Lord Buddha asked all the animals to come to him before he left the earth. Only 12 animals came
to wish him farewell, and as a reward Buddha named a year after each one.

The most important food during Chinese New Year is the dumpling /dm.pl/ (jiaozi). Made with
flour and stuffed with different fillings, dumplings are usually eaten on the Eve. Because their shape
resembles the Yuanbao (a kind of money used in ancient times), dumplings are eaten to bring wealth in the
coming year.
In Thailand, a special threeday water festival on April 1315 marks Songkran, the Buddhists'
celebration of the new year. Parades feature /fi.tr/ huge statues of Buddha that spray water on
passersby. In small villages, young people throw water at each other for fun. People also release fish into
rivers as an act of kindness.
As a way to show respect, younger people often practice water pouring over the palms of elders' hands.
The elders in return wish the youngsters good luck and prosperity.
At Songkran, people tie strings around each other's wrists to show their respect. A person can have as
many as 25 or 30 strings on one wrist, each from a different person. The strings are supposed to be left on
until they fall off naturally.
The Spanish ritual on New Year's eve is to eat twelve grapes at midnight. The tradition is meant to secure
twelve happy months in the coming year.
In Denmark it is a good sign to find your door heaped with a pile /pal/ of broken dishes at New Years.
Old dishes are saved year around to throw them at the homes where their friends live on New Years Eve.
Many broken dishes were a symbol that you have many friends. as soon as the clock rings twelve at
midnight, marzipan ring cake is served to all those present.
In England the custom of first-footing is important. The reason is that it is supposed to ensure good luck
for the inhabitants of the house. The first-footer must be male, young, healthy and good looking. He must
be dark-haired and he should be carrying a small piece of coal, money, bread, and salt. These are the
symbols of wealth.
On New Year's Day children from England and Great Britain rise early to make the rounds to their
neighbors singing songs. They are given coins, mince pies, apples and other sweets for singing.

Central and South America

In Brazil, Ecuador, Bolivia, and Venezuela, its considered lucky to wear special underwear on New
Years Eve; in cities like So Paulo and La Paz, market vendors start displaying brightly colored
underpants a few days before the holiday. The most popular colors are red and yellow: red is supposed to
bring love in the coming year, and yellow is supposed to bring money.
More New Year Traditions

Indonesia also has two New Year celebrations the official one on January 1 and another on the
Islamic New Year, whose date varies from year to year.

The Russian Orthodox Church observes the New Year according to the Julian calendar, which
places the day on January 14.

In Vietnam the new year usually begins in February.

Iran celebrates New Year's Day on March 21.

Each of the religious groups in India has its own date for the beginning of the year. One
Hindu New Year, Baisakhi, comes sometime in April or May.

The people in Morocco observe the beginning of the year on the tenth day of Muharram, the first
month of the Islamic year.

The Koreans celebrate their New Year the first three days in January.