Chinese Lunar New Year 2023 is on 22nd January and this year it is the Year of the Rabbit. Considered to be one of the most important celebrations for Chinese people around the world, Chinese Lunar New Year is the largest and most colourful event in Chinese culture.
Lunar New Year is often celebrated with the exchange of lucky red envelopes filled with money between friends and family to spread good fortune ahead but greeting cards have become popular as a way to spread good wishes as well.
The Year of the Rabbit is perfect for sending Personalised Cards to your loved ones as it is all about strengthening bonds with your friends and family. Our connections are one of the most important and fulfilling areas of our lives, and what better way to build and solidify this than with a unique and thoughtful card from our extensive personalised range!
But first, let’s learn a bit more about how this amazing event is celebrated.
How is Chinese Lunar New Year Celebrated?
The Chinese Lunar New Year signals the end of winter and is a sign of new growth to come. It is celebrated when the new moon begins between the 21st January and the 29th February, with the date changing each year. For 2023, it will start on Sunday 22nd January and will celebrate the Year of the Rabbit.
In East Asia, the first day of Lunar New Year is commonly called the Spring Festival. Unlike some countries – where New Year’s is one big night of celebration – festivities can continue for fifteen days! Here are just some of the different things that happen in Chinese households while ChineseLunar New Year runs its course:
- Families will come together to share a meal – the reunion dinner – on the day before the New Year starts.
- Firecrackers and fireworks are often set off on the the first day of Chinese Lunar New Year, to ward off evil spirits and the mythical beast, Nian.
- Houses and streets are decorated with colourful paper decorations, lanterns and red envelopes with money are given to family and friends for good luck.
- At the end of the celebrations, a lantern festival is held, and the Chinese Dragon, a symbol of good fortune, leads this procession.
What is the Chinese Lunar New Year 2023 Animal? — Rabbit
There are twelve Chinese zodiac animals which rotate each year. According to the Chinese calendar, the year you were born might determine your personality. 2023 is the Year of the Rabbit! Anyone born in 1951, 1963, 1975, 1987, 1999, 2011 and 2023 is a rabbit. Said to be one of the luckiest of the Chinese signs, it symbolises creativity, elegance and kindness.
Which sign are you?
What to Write in a Lunar New Year Card
Each Dom and Geri card allows for a personalised message on the outside and on the inside, so you are able to write your own thoughtful good wishes in one of our fantastic designs.
Most Lunar New Year cards include a simple wish. Wishes for happiness, health and peace are always appropriate, and it’s perfectly ok to add your own personality and voice into the message that you create.
If you would like to add a traditional wish, the most common Chinese Lunar New Year greeting in Cantonese is, “gong hei fat choy” and translates to, “Wishing you great happiness and prosperity.” In Mandarin, the same greeting is “gong xi fa cai.” Or why not simply say, “Happy New Year” in Mandarin is “xin nian kuai le” and “san nin fai lok” in Cantonese.
How to Make a Paper Lantern:
Want to make your own lanterns using some personalised wrapping paper from our website? Why not have the whole family join in making them and you can festoon your ceilings with strings of them for a pretty Lunar New Year decoration. Here's a step-by-step guide of how to make one:
- Choose the personalised wrapping paper design you would like on our website.
- For your outer section, fold your paper in half, with the image facing outwards and use a pair of scissors to cut lines along the fold. It is important to not cut all the way across, as if you do your lantern will fall apart.
- You could draw lines on the card to follow, or they can cut just by eye. It’s not essential to cut in perfectly straight lines, or to space them out exactly.
- Open up your card, and roll your lantern up so that the two shorter sides meet. Stick these around the top end and then secure the bottom end too.
- Add a handle to the top of the lantern by gluing it in place.
- Add a bottom if adding a battery powered candle.
You can make several colourful lanterns and hang them on a string to make a Lunar New Year Garland.
Use them to decorate your table at home or hang on a garland.
