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我 很 喜歡 這 個
視頻 ！！！
我 的 奶奶 送 我 這 個
視頻。

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Did you know that eating porridge on chinese new year breakfast is unlucky, as they think that it brings poverty?
They think this as the "poor" people usually eat porridge for breakfast.

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1. The Legend of Why New Year Is Celebrated

Chinese New Year's Day is called Guo Nian (过年) in Chinese, which can mean 'celebrate (a new) year' or 'overcome Nian'. The character 年 (Nián) could mean a 'year' or 'the monster Nian'.

In ancient times, there was a monster named Nian (年, or Nianshou 年兽) with a long head and sharp horns. It dwelled deep in the sea all year round and only showed up every New Year's Eve to eat people and livestock in nearby villages.

Therefore, on the day of New Year's Eve, people would flee to remote mountains to avoid being harmed by the monster. People had lived in fear of this monster until an old man with white hair and a ruddy complexion visited the village.

He refused to hide in the mountains along with the villagers, but successfully scared away the monster by pasting red papers on doors, burning bamboo to make a loud cracking sound (precursor to firecrackers), lighting candles in the houses, and wearing red clothes. When the villagers came back, they were surprised to discover that the village had not been destroyed.

After that, every New Year's Eve, people did as the old man instructed and the monster Nian never showed up again. This tradition has been continued until the present time and has become an important way to celebrate the arrival of the new year.

Click to see the History of Chinese New Year.

2. The Legend of Why Red Envelopes Are Given

red envelopes

During the Chinese New Year period, the married or the elderly give red envelopes to children or unmarried juniors. A red envelope is also called yasui qian ("suppressing Sui money").

According to legend, on New Year's Eve, besides the monster Nian, there was a demon named Sui that came out to terrify children while they were asleep.

It was said that the children who were touched by the demon would be too scared to cry out loud, got a terrible fever, and even became mentally unstable. To keep children safe from being harmed by Sui, parents would light candles and stay up for the whole night.

On one New Year's Eve, in an official's family household, the parents gave their child eight coins to play with in order to keep him awake, so as to avoid him being hurt by the demon. The child wrapped the coins in red paper, opened the packet, rewrapped it, and reopened it until he was too tired to fall asleep. Then the parents placed the packet with eight coins under his pillow.

When Sui tried to touch his head, the eight coins emitted a strong light and scared the demon away. The eight coins turned out to be eight fairies. From then on, giving red envelopes became a way to keep children safe and bring good luck.

Click to see Chinese Red Envelopes - Amount, Symbols and How to Give

3. The Legend of Why Spring Couplets Are Pasted

It is recorded that the origin of spring couplets can be dated back to 1,000 years ago when people hung taofu (桃符, written charms on peach wood) on doors.

Legend has it that there was a huge peach tree stretching for more than 1,500 kilometers on a mountain in the ghost world. To the northeast of the tree, two guards named Shentu and Yulei guarded the entrance to the ghost world. They would catch the ghosts who harmed people and then send them to tigers as food.

Therefore, all ghosts were afraid of the two guards. It was believed that hanging a piece of peach wood with an inscription of the two guards' names on doors could scare evil things away.

By the Song Dynasty (960-1279), people began to write two auspicious antithetical lines on the peach wood instead of the names of the two guards. Later, the peach wood was replaced by red paper, which symbolizes good luck and happiness. Since then, pasting spring couplets has been a custom to welcome the new year and express best wishes.

Click to learn more about Chinese Couplets - History, Classification, and Classic Chinese Couplets

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Top 3 Famous Chinese New Year Stories: Legend of Monster Nian

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Why Chinese people celebrate the Chinese New Year? Check here to see 3 stories about the New Year celebration in China.

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Chinese people greet one another with unique sayings when they meet during the Chinese New Year.

There are different ways to greet people during Chinese New Year and plenty of greetings and sayings you can use.

They are used to wish good fortune in health, family, business and careers.

The most straightforward way to say "Happy Chinese New Year" in Mandarin is xīn nián (new year) kuài lè (happy), which is written as 新年快乐 in simplified Chinese characters.

It literally translates as happy new year and can be used during Chinese New Year and the Gregorian New Year.

The simplified version of this xin nian hao (good) which is pronounced shin nee-an how and more often used for friends and family.

"Guo nian hao" pronounced gor nee-an how is also used as a New Year greeting and means "pass the New Year well" and can be used on the day or after.

The most common Chinese New Year greeting in Cantonese, which is spoken in parts of southern China and Hong Kong, is "Gong hei fat choy".

This directly translates to "wishing you great happiness and prosperity" and is does not actually mean happy new year.

The greeting is frequently used at this time of year but it actually delivers a wish for prosperity to the person you say it to.

It is more frequently used when greeting work colleagues or business partners during Chinese New Year.

This year marks the year of the dog and gǒunián jíxiáng translates to mean "Good luck for this dog year".

Chinese New Year celebrations are not limited to China, the 'Spring Festival' as it is also known as it celebrated all over the world.

In East and southeast Asia, Brunei, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, North Korea, Singapore, South Korea and Vietnam put on festivities.

Traditions can vary across Chinese communities, but most celebrations involve fireworks, family reunions and feasts.

The New Year is a chance for communities to prepare for good fortune and luck in the coming year.

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Chinese New Year 2018 wishes: How to wish a happy new year in Chinese

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CHINESE New Year is a time for celebration and marks the start of the Lunar New Year. It will be celebrated by millions of people around the world, but how do you wish someone a happy new year in Chinese?

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What do you enjoy the most about this holiday? Why?

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Is anything people normally avoid doing during Chinese New Year?

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What people say to each other during Chinese New Year?

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Who are you expecting to give you the red envolope this year?

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Why people wear RED on Chinese New Year?

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1. 恭喜發財
2. 萬事如意
3. 大吉大利
4. 狗年行大運
5. 恭喜新年好