Saturday, January 28th marks Chinese New Year Day. Chinese New Year is a 15-day festival that celebrates the arrival of the new lunar year, and this year is the year of the rooster.
People born in the Year of the Rooster are said to be energetic, determined and brave. Read about the birth years associated with the rooster here. Even if you’ve never celebrated before, you can enjoy the holiday this year. Here’s how to celebrate Chinese New Year in Calgary.
- 2017 Year of the Rooster Chinese New Year Carnival: this celebration is happening every Saturday and Sunday until February 12th at the Chinese Cultural Centre. The celebrations include performances, music, lanterns and more, full details here.
- Lion dance in the East Village: this is a free event happening this Saturday. The East Village and the Jing Wo Cultural Centre are ringing in the Year of the Rooster with a traditional lion dance along the RiverWalk at 4 pm.
- Chinese New Year at the Deane House: Chef Matthias Fong of River Cafe joins Chef Jamie Harling of Deane House to create a special dinner for Chinese New Year on January 28th. Details on pricing and menu here.
- Visa Infinite Dinner at Foreign Concept: the dinner will be prepared by Chef Duncan Ly, Chef Jinhee Lee and Chef Roy Oh. There will also be beer, sake and wine pairings. Tickets and reservation information is here.
- Chinatown District Lunar New Year Reception: this cultural and business event includes a traditional Chinese dinner, performances and networking opportunities. This is taking place at Regency Palace restaurant on February 8th, details here.
The Chinese New Year is the most important of the holidays for the Chinese. It is defined to be the first day of the first month in the traditional Chinese calendar. Unlike the Christian New Year, which is based on a solar calendar, the Chinese New Year is based on a traditional Chinese lunisolar calendar whose date indicates both the moon phase and the time of the solar year. A lunar month is around 2 days shorter than a solar month. In order to “catch up” with the solar calendar, an extra month is inserted every few years. This is why, according to the solar calendar, the Chinese New Year falls on a different date each year. [Chinese New Years]
Happy Chinese New Year!
