Chinese New Year is perhaps the first big celebration of 2022.
Although in the west we see January as a time to wipe the slate clean and start afresh, in China the timeline is a little different.
Also known as the Lunar New Year or Spring Festival, it is a large and colourful event, that is an important date in the Chinese calendar.
It is celebrated for two weeks, with fireworks and red clothes and decorations, My London reports.
It symbolises the closing of the old year and welcomes in luck and prosperity to the new one.
Each year on the Chinese calendar is linked to one of 12 zodiac animals that come with specific characteristics. Last year, for example, was the Year of the Ox.
2022 is no different, sharing the same animal that as 2010 and 1998.
When is Chinese New Year 2022?
Chinese New Year 2022 falls on Tuesday, February 1, 2022. It is recognised as a public holiday, which allows Chinese people to take seven days off from work from January 31.
The celebrations typically start from Chinese New Year's Eve and last for 16 days, finishing up on the Lantern Festival.
The lantern festival, called Shangyuan Festival, falls on February 15 in 2022. To celebrate, people across East Asia let off paper lanterns into the sky, creating a truly beautiful spectacle of light.
Preparations for Chinese New Year traditionally start three weeks before their New Year's Eve. People living in rural parts of China can start cleaning their houses from the 23rd of the twelfth Chinese lunar month.
What animal is it for Chinese New Year 2022?
2022 is the Year of the Tiger. The ferocious water tiger is known as the king of all beasts in China, and is third in the Chinese zodiac. The order is commonly thought to follow the story of the Great Race, an old folk tale.
In the story, the animals raced to reach the Jade Emperor. The order they made it in is the order the years are named. The Rat won out against much bigger, faster animals by hitching a ride on the ox.
The story goes that the animals raced each other to be the first to reach the Jade Emperor. So, the years are named in a 12-year cycle reflecting the results of the race.
The Rat is thought to have won by hitching a ride on the Ox’s back and jumping off at the last minute.
This means the Ox, who had been due to win the race, had to settle for second place.
The last time we had a year of the Tiger was in 2010. It also fell in 1986, 1974, 1962 and 1998. If you were born in any of these years, you are known as a Tiger.
The Chinese zodiac attributes positive and negative qualities to each animal. The Tiger is a symbol of power and lordliness in Chinese culture, and was often associated with Emperors or Kings.
The Chinese King of the jungle is considered to be competitive, self-confident, and brave, holding great willpower and strength.
