Chinese New Year 2020 Rat Year Celebration
By Master Allen Tsai January 31, 20222020 Chinese New Year Day of the Rat Year
Why do the Chinese have a 7-day Chinese New Year holiday?
The official Chinese New Year is a 3-day holiday. It's a 5-day holiday if we include two day weekend. China's territory is huge. Many out of town Chinese workers need to take a whole day to go home. The government gives Chinese two extra days for the New Year holiday. But Chinese have to work one extra day for each weekend before and after the Chinese New Year week. For example, January 25 is the Chinese New Year Day. The 7-Day holiday starts on Chinese New Year eve, which is January 24, to January 30. But the Chinese have to work on January 19, Sunday and Feburay 1, Saturday.
How will Chinese New Year be celebrated in China?
The Chinese New Year holiday combines the elements of the Thanksgives and Christmas - family reunion, gift exchange, and new year celebration. The New Year celebration begins from the reunion dinner at Chinse New Year's Eve. In the old days, the reunion dinner took weeks to prepare. Today, the Chinese can find lots of dishes from the supermarket or restaurants. But many mothers still cook the family favorable food for the children coming back from other towns. The food at the dinner table must be full like a potluck party. Every dish has an auspicious meaning behind it. It's connected to longevity, wealth, reunion, perfection, good luck, health, satisfaction or promotion based on the homophone of the dish's name.
The dinner has to wait for the last child arriving home to start. Family members enjoy the food and chat all night. Today, Chinese might watch TV specials for Chinese New Year during and after dinner. Young children will receive the lucky money of Red Envelope before going to bed. Adults probably will chat till the New Year arrives.
Chinese New Year Day Celebration
Chinese New Year day is the first day of the brand New Year. People wear their new appearances to meet friends and say Gong Xi Fa Chai, which means congratulations and make a fortune. Children might receive Red Envelopes from the seniors.
On Chinese New Year Day, the celebration programs are everywhere. The sound of drums, cymbals, firecracker are mixing into New Year music. People in big and old cities still follow the tradition. They gather in front of the square of the temple to join the new year celebration. You can see the lion dancing, dragon dancing, martial art performance, or parade. It's different today. Chinese New Year holiday is good shopping time for bargains. All deportment stores have good deals for the early birds. They will handout limited lucky Red Envelopes. Internet stores send thousands of thousands of digital Red Envelopes. Commonly, Chinese companies will give employees a full month pay bonus before the Chinese New Year. Some companies have good earnings the previous year. The companies may give employees a full year salary bonus. High-tech companies might give employees a bonus for more than one year's pay.
Since the holiday is seven days long, it's a good time for family travel. Usually, the Great Wall, Forbidden City, National Musem, theme parks might be packed like sardines. Therefore, some Chinese like to travel abroad to relax.
2020 Spring Festival Celebration of Rat Year
2020 Chinese Zodiac Year of the Rat
2020 Chinese Lantern Festival of Rat Year
Why is 2010 the Year of Golden Rat?
2020 is the Year of the Golden Rat or Metal Rat. The Chinese character of Metal is the same as Gold. Gold is more expensive. Chinese like to call it Golden Rat. The color of Metal is white in the Chinese Five Element theory. Therefore, 2020 is also called the Year of the White Rat.
Chinese Calendar combines the Chinese lunar calendar and the Stem-Branch zodiac calendar. Chinese New Year Day is the first lunar day of the first lunar month. The Stem-Branch zodiac calendar is a solar calendar. The Stem-Branch calendar is the cycle of 60 counting system. The sequence of 60 Stem-Branch is assigned by 10 Yin-Yang five elements and 12 animal signs. The first Stem-Branch is Wooden Rat. The first king fo China was the Yellow King. He became king in 2697 B.C., therefore China will enter the 4717th year on January 25, 2020. Since 4717 = (60 * 78) + 37, therefore 2020 is the 37th Stem-Branch in the cycle. The zodiac sign is the Yang-Metal Rat.
What is the meaning of the Golden Rat?
2020 is the year of the Golden Rat or Metal Rat. According to the Chinese Five Elements theory, Rat is the Yin Water, which is related to the cold water or rain. The Metal of 2020 is Yang Metal, which is related to the strong wind. Wind will bring abundant Water for plants to grow. But it might become a rainstorm. If the weather has too many gloomy and cold days, people should go outside more to enjoy the sunshine to charge our energy.
Predictions are associated with Golden Rat Year
Chinese Zodiac is a Yin-Yang Five Element theory. To make a good prediction, we need to convert your birthday into the Chinese Zodiac birth chart and then study the relationships of Five Elements inside your birth chart. If Water is your Lucky Element, then you will have a pretty good year in 2020. 2020 is a strong Water year. The Fire is afraid of the Water. If Fire is your Lucky Element, then 2020 won't bring you too many benefits in 2020. The pages of the Chinese Zodiac Rat Year Predictions are in the following.
2020 Chinese Zodiacs by Your Zodiac Sign
2020 Chinese Horoscopes by Birth Chart
2020 Chinese Five Element Astrology
Chinese zodiac signs will be especially lucky or unlucky in 2020
2020 is the Yang-Metal Rat year. Metal and Fire have fighting relationship. Horse and Rat have fighting relationship. Sometimes Metal and Wood will challenge each other. Fighting is a sign of disagreement, dispute or quarrel. That's is not a lucky sign. Therefore, people born in Fire Horse (1966) and Wooden Horse (1954) Years have poor people relationships.
Yin-Wood and Yang-Metal have attraction relationship. Cow and Rat have attraction relationship with Earth. Monkey and Rat have attraction relationship with Water. Dragon and Rat have attraction relationship with Water. Therefore, people born in Wooden Cow (1985), Water Dragon (1952), Water Monkey (1992), Water Cow (1973), and Earth Cow (1949) have good people relationships. Good people relationship can bring people good luck in career, investment, love, etc. More related to Chinese Zodiac Predictions are in the following.